


Beauty in the Blood

by nicky_writes



Category: Loki - Fandom, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Dom Loki (Marvel), F/M, He's fucking psycho, Kidnapping, Like, Loki (Marvel) Does What He Wants, Loki is really crazy in this, Murder, Rape, Rape/Non-con Elements, Serial Killer, Violence, Yandere, for real, serial killer loki
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:54:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 5
Words: 30,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22854310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nicky_writes/pseuds/nicky_writes
Summary: One day your friend convinces you to join a dating website that matches people based on their search histories, and when you match with Loki Odinson, a handsome, intelligent coroner who’s a fan of your murder mysteries, you’re absolutely thrilled. But there’s something off about Loki, and as your relationship progresses, you discover that his dark side is even darker than you could ever have imagined…
Relationships: Loki (Marvel)/Reader, Loki/Reader
Comments: 194
Kudos: 517





	1. Chapter One

It was hard to find a decent guy these days. New York was the city of dreamers, artists, and absolute weirdos, and out of the three, you only seemed to attract the latter. You’d been to speed dating events and Singles Night at your local bar, but there was never a connection, never a spark, and every guy seemed to have something fundamentally wrong with him. It wasn’t that you were looking for the perfect guy, it was just that you’d met too many who were demanding, controlling, or misogynistic. 

You’d given up on finding your special someone a year after you’d moved to the city. After all, being single wasn’t too bad. You could do what you want whenever you wanted without having to think about someone else. So what if you didn’t have anyone to kiss on New Years? So what if you cried a little every now and then from feeling so alone? It was fine. It was absolutely fine, you told yourself. Fine, fine, fine…

“I’m absolutely fine, Wanda. I don’t need a boyfriend to be happy.”

You were sat across from your good friend, who was stirring her coffee with one hand while she tapped her fingers against the table with the other. She arched a skeptical eyebrow at you before taking a sip of her drink.

“You’re right; you don’t. But you’re lonely,” she pointed out. “A boyfriend would help with that.”

There was no denying that she was right. Wanda was perceptive, and she was also one of your closest friends. You’d met her during your first week of living in New York, and she’d helped you adjust to living in such a busy, fast-paced place. She probably knew you better than you knew yourself, and that was why you slumped in defeat and threw back the last gulp left of your mimosa.

“God, you’re right,” you bemoaned. “I hate it when you’re right.”

“I know,” she grinned. “But don’t worry; I can help.”

“Wanda, not that I don’t appreciate your effort, but the last guy you sent me out on a date with got mad that I didn’t put out after he paid for my dinner. I don’t want to go on any more blind dates.”

She winced, reaching over to pat the back of your hand.

“I had no idea Kyle was like that,” she promised you. “If I’d known he would be such an asshole you know I wouldn’t have set you up. But I wasn’t going to suggest another blind date.”

You tilted your head to the side.

“What _did_ you have in mind, then?”

She grinned and reached into her purse, fishing around until she found her phone.

“I heard of a new dating app that made me immediately think of you,” she explained excitedly, pulling up the website and passing her device over to you. “It matches you with people in your area based on your Google searches!”

“Pfffft.” You scoffed, taking a quick glance at the screen before looking back to your friend. “That’s the worst idea I’ve ever heard of.”

“I know, I know, it’s a strange concept. But it has one of the highest success ratings out of all the dating websites! It’s only been around for six months, but over half of its users say that they’ve found someone they can see themselves spending the rest of their lives with!”

“Statistics can be made up, you know,” you groused. “Besides, one look at my browser history would send anyone running in the opposite direction.”

“Maybe not someone who has one similar to yours,” she pointed out. “C’mon, what’s the worst that could happen?”

“Wanda, you know what I do for a living, right? I could match with some kind of serial killer!”

Your friend just waved you off and ordered another coffee, picking up her phone again and stuffing it into her pocket.

“Just try it? Please?” she begged. “Just give it a shot, and if it doesn’t work out, then that’s that, right? No harm done.”

Several hours later, and you found yourself sitting on your couch, staring at the same website homepage that Wanda had shown you. You bit your lip, letting your fingers skim over your laptop’s keys, not typing anything just yet but feeling their ridges as you considered the “Join Now” button.

There wouldn’t be any harm in it, right? Just like Wanda said, if you hated the kind of people you matched with, then you could always delete your profile. And you didn’t _only_ search things for your research, after all; you also googled recipes and cute animal videos. What if you matched with a gorgeous guy who’d also googled “Try Not To Laugh – Kitten Edition”? Hell yeah.

After taking a deep breath to steel yourself, you clicked on the button, making quick work of filling out the ‘About You’ information. Five minutes later, you’d chosen a profile picture and linked your Google account to the website, and you were ready to sift through your matches. The wheel on the screen turned slowly as your computer processed the information, and you actually jolted when it dinged with the results.

Well. Result. There was only one person who’d shown up with a similar search history as you. You let out a breath you hadn’t known you were holding, and you almost closed your laptop and went to retreat a pint of Ben and Jerry’s from your fridge, calling it a day and forgetting the whole debacle. But then you saw his profile picture and… Holy shit.

He was lean and pale, and your eyes were immediately drawn to his long, black hair. He had it slicked back in the photo with just one strand hanging down over his left eye. In the photo, he was wearing an exquisitely tailored black suit with a black shirt and tie underneath it, and you couldn’t help but let your eyes trail along the lithe contours of his body. He looked as if he were carved from marble; you almost started drooling just from the sight of him.

You jumped again when your computer dinged for a second time, and your eyes widened when you saw that you had a new message in your inbox. With fingers that were just barely trembling, you opened it, skimming over the message from the man you’d paired with.

_Good evening. I must admit, I was quite surprised when I got the notification that we’d matched with one another. I’ve had this profile for about four months, and I’d had yet to be paired with anyone._

So he was handsome _and_ eloquent. You clicked on his profile and blinked when you saw his name. Loki Odinson. Wow. Even his name was refined, if not a little strange; it sounded like a name you’d give to one of the characters in your books.

 **Hello, Loki** , you typed out. **It’s a pleasure to meet you. I was pretty surprised to find someone else who has such a twisted search history. I don’t know if I should be happy or concerned.**

It only took him a few moments to reply.

The feeling is mutual; I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation for the morbidity, though. Mine is that I happen to be a coroner for a living. And yours is…?

 **I’m a writer** _,_ you explained, your interest piqued by his profession _._ **I write murder mysteries. So, yeah… Morbidity seems like a fitting way to describe it.**

_A writer, you say. I happen to be quite an avid reader; would I know any of your work?_

**I’m not sure; have you ever heard of The Bell Ringer? That’s probably my most well-known book.**

_You’re kidding._

He sent you a picture, and it was of a pale hand holding a copy of The Bell Ringer, your name glistening in bold font beneath the title.

_I’m a great fan of your work, as you can see. I own several of your novels._

Another photo loaded beneath the newest text, and it was of a shelf full of your books. The Shrew Woman, A Night in New Hampshire, The Hanging Woman – nine books in total. The only one that you’d written that wasn’t there was the one you’d just sent out to your publisher, and you suspected that once it was out in stores, it would be joining the ranks of Loki’s shelf.

_Wow! It’s always so nice to meet a reader. I’m so glad you like my stuff!_

**Oh, love, you’re a huge talent. I must say, I’ve found your work rather inspiring.**

_That’s so kind of you to say!_

**I know that this is rather forward, but are you doing anything tonight?**

You glanced up at the clock you had hanging on the wall – 8:13 pm. It was already pretty late; typically you’d be putting on your pajamas and curling up in bed to do some late night reading here soon. But something inside of you whispered that you should do it; you weren’t spontaneous enough. What if this was an opportunity to meet the One? At the very least, it would be cool to meet such a loyal reader.

_It depends on if this guy I’m talking to online asks me out. Do you think he will?_

**He would have to be a fool not to. I suspect he’ll ask you if you’d like to meet at a café.**

_Well, then, I suspect I’ll have to say yes._

An excited grin was plastered over your lips as you bantered back and forth, and when Loki sent you an address and a message saying _‘I’ll see you there in twenty minutes’_ , you jumped off of your sofa and rushed to put on your shoes. You were still dressed in the leggings and oversized sweater you’d worn to brunch with Wanda, and all you had to do was straighten your hair and pull on your boots before you were out the door. The address he’d sent you was within walking distance of your apartment; in fact, you’d been there before, but never on a date.

Your heart was pounding the entire way over, and you couldn’t get over how unlike you this was. You didn’t just get up and meet guys you’d met on the internet on such short notice, much less so late at night. And yet here you were, stepping into the café fifteen minutes after receiving Loki’s message. Your eyes scanned the room, but it appeared that he wasn’t there yet. As you got in line to order, you tried to calm yourself, not wanting to look too frazzled when your date finally showed up. You tried to even your breathing, twisting the fabric of your sleeves between your nervous fingers.

 _He’s just a person_ , you told yourself. _You’ve been on dates before; everything was going to be fine. Nothing bad was going to-_

“Hello, there.”

You gasped and turned around, eliciting a chuckle from the man now towering over you. He was dressed in a set of black trousers with a simple white button-down tucked into them, and his hair was loose and falling around his shoulders. His grin was wide and full of teeth, with just the slightest sinister edge to it. But his eyes were warm and twinkling with excitement and just a hint of mischief. Those clear blue irises brought a smile to your own lips, and you chuckled along with him at your initial fright.

“Sorry, I didn’t hear you walk in,” you explained.

“It’s quite alright,” he assured you, offering his hand. “I know you already are aware, but I’m Loki.”

You grinned and introduced yourself, going to shake his hand, but he smoothly cradled your fingers and drew them up to his digits, pressing a light kiss to your knuckles.

“It’s good to finally meet you in person,” he cooed, seemingly all too aware of how flustered you now were.

You opened your mouth to say something in return, but you couldn’t think of anything to say as silence lay heavily between the two of you. You were saved, though, when the barista called out to you, asking if she could take your order. You spun around on your heel and shot her a grateful glance before ordering your favorite menu item and reaching into your purse for your wallet.

“…And I’ll have a cup of Earl Grey,” Loki stepped in, handing her a card from his open wallet.

“Oh, I could have paid for mine,” you protested, but he waved you off.

“No, no, love. It’s my treat.”

He gave you a tight, close-lipped smile, and you didn’t protest further as he paid for your orders. He led you to a booth in the corner, sliding into the side opposite to yours gracefully. The leather squeaked against your thighs as you shuffled in, and when you were finally settled across from him you caught a flicker in his eye that sent chills up your spine.

It was gone in an instant, though, replaced by the same suave look he’d had while ordering his tea.

“So,” he began, leaning forward with his elbows on the table. “As I said before, I’m a fan of your work. Truly, I have been since your very first novel.”

“’Beauty in the Blood’?” you asked incredulously. “I’m surprised; no one seems to like that one. After reading it, my mom suggested that I start going to therapy.”

Loki chuckled, licking his lips, and your eyes followed his tongue of their own accord.

“Ah, well, whether or not that’s true, it’s still my favorite of your works by far,” he continued. “The parts told by the killer’s perspective were…beautiful. You captured his mind so artfully, it was as if…”

He paused, searching your face for a moment.

“It was as if…you understood him,” he finished.

You furrowed your eyebrows, thinking over his words. He’d skipped right over the small talk you’d come to suspect on first dates, but despite how strange of a direction the conversation was taking, you were…intrigued by it.

“Well,” you started, “I feel like I _did_ understand him. I mean, sure, he took delight in the killing of others; he saw it as an art form. But as twisted and evil as he was, he was still a person – a person that had come from my mind. Cuz the thing is…”

You paused, gathering your thoughts and trying to find the right words to convey them.

“The thing is,” you spoke carefully, “that every storyteller uses bits and pieces of themselves to tell a story. A story is like a stained glass window – it’s made up of different pieces of an author’s mind and soul, and it comes together to create something greater than the sum of those pieces. So, yes, I think I can understand him; his darkness might be a reflection of my own – deep, deep down.”

You glanced up at him, blinking when you saw the transfixed look upon his face. His eyes were wider than they had been before, and his lips were parted as he listened.

“Sorry,” you chuckled, shaking your head. “I, uh… I got a little carried away. You probably think I’m some kind of freak-“

“I think you’re _beautiful_.”

His words took your breath away, and when the barista set down your cups on the table, you jumped in surprise.

“Is there anything else I can get you guys?” she asked cheerfully, and a flash of annoyance crossed over Loki’s face at the interruption.

“We’re fine,” you assured her quickly, giving her a polite smile. “Thank you.”

“You’re so welcome!”

You gripped your mug tightly as she walked away, savoring its heat as it warmed up your cold hands.

“So,” you said, desperate to break the sudden silence that had fallen over the table, “you mentioned that you’re a coroner. What drew you to your profession?”

Loki sipped his tea, humming as he thought over the question.

“Well… The conversation has already veered towards the darker side of things,” he mused. “I might as well tell you the story.

“When I was twelve years old, my sister killed herself,” he began.

“Oh, Loki, I’m so sorry-“

“Oh, no, don’t be,” he interrupted. “We weren’t close at all. I was adopted at a young age, you see, and Hella never accepted me. She was cruel, and she took every opportunity she could to remind me of my inadequacies.

“But, as I said, one day she died. At first, we didn’t know how it happened; there were no marks on her body whatsoever. She just looked like she was sleeping as she lay there in bed. We called the hospital, and the police, and eventually the coroners discovered that she’d injected bleach into her arm. Later on, my mother found the syringe under her bed, and all the pieces of the puzzle fit together. We finally knew the how and the when, and I never really cared much about the why.

“…That probably makes me sound like a monster, doesn’t it?”

You sat back, swallowing a scalding-hot sip of your drink before answering.

“No,” you answered, shaking your head. “I don’t think that makes you a monster. She abused you; it’s only natural that you found some relief in her death. I would’ve probably felt the same way.”

He studied you for a moment, tracing the lip of his cup with his index finger.

“I wonder if you would have…” he murmured to himself, so quietly that you almost didn’t hear it.

“Well,” he sighed, plastering a smile on once more and straightening up, “you probably aren’t going to be very keen on a second date if I keep dragging our conversation into subjects like this. Tell me, where are you from? What made you move to the city?”

“How do you know I’m not from here?”

“Love, neither of us have the New York accent, now do we?”

You laughed, and after that the two of you fell into an easy flow; it seemed that the heavy beginning of the date made it all the easier to talk to him. You discussed what you liked about the city and what you didn’t like; you learned that Loki was originally from a small town right outside of London, and that he has an adopted brother named Thor that he was close to.

“He’s an oaf,” he’d said when you’d asked what his brother was like. “Everything about him is literally the opposite of its coinciding part of me. But…he loves me; he never thought of me as the adopted child. I was always just his brother; despite his shortcomings, I think he does mean well. Besides, his IQ level is in the single digits, so I’m afraid I must look out for him for fear of what would happen if he were left to his own devices.”

From there, you shared stories about growing up, about life and ex partners and mistakes and successes. Before you knew it, the happy barista from before was approaching your table again, this time with a nervous smile.

“Hey, guys,” she greeted. “I’m so so sorry to bother you, but we’re closing up…”

Loki glanced down at his watch as you glanced at your phone – 10:30.

“Shit,” you laughed. “I had no idea. Time flies…”

Your date shot a glare at the barista before his eyes flickered to you. He gave you a wide, close-lipped smile and straightened his collar, raising his eyebrows.

“Then I suppose it’s time for us to head out,” he murmured. “May I escort you home?”

“Oh! Of course. If it’s not too far out of your way…”

“Even if it is,” he smiled, “I still want to walk you home.”

Your heart fluttered, and you set a five dollar bill on the table as a tip before standing up. The barista scurried away, and you almost turned to apologize to her for Loki’s cold shoulder. But you didn’t know him well yet; maybe that’s just how he was. Maybe he didn’t mean anything by it.

“You guys have a good night!” she called out after you, and you smiled over your shoulder at her before reaching for the door. Loki’s hand darted out and grabbed the handle before you could, opening it for you with a slight bow.

“After you, my lady.”

“How chivalrous.”

The two of you walked side by side down the street, hands brushing as you strolled down the sidewalk. You glanced upwards, smiling at the scattering of stars overhead as your breath fogged in the chilly air. You shivered, rubbing your arms a little bit to ward off the chill. Loki evidently caught the movement, and you felt his arm drape around your shoulders. You leaned into the warmth of his body, tilting your head up to share a grin with him.

“Again – chivalrous.”

He chuckled, squeezing you for a beat.

“I try my best… It’s a beautiful night, isn’t it?”

“Gorgeous. Not as gorgeous as you, but…very pretty.”

You laughed and hid your face in his neck.

“Stop… You’re too charming.”

“Oh, really? I was under the impression there was no such thing.”

The two of you fell back into a companionable silence as you guided him towards your brownstone, until he spoke up once again.

“I must say… There’s a question that I’ve been meaning to ask you that I’m just…dying to know the answer to.”

“Go ahead, Loki. I’m an open book.”

He laughed softly again, hesitating before voicing his question.

“If you were to kill someone, how would you do it?”

You paused, thinking over your response.

“Well… Why am I killing them? Is it a crime of passion or a crime of necessity? Am I killing them just for the enjoyment of it, or out of revenge, or because the person needs to die for a bigger cause?”

“That… That is actually an excellent follow-up question,” Loki mused. “Let’s say… A crime of necessity. The person needs to die for a personal reason with no anger or revenge in mind. How do you do it?”

You bit your lip, calling to mind all of your morbid Google searches that might apply.

“Um… Air shot between the toes,” you finally said. “Fill a syringe with air and inject it between their toes while they sleep. It’ll look like a heart attack that way.”

Unbeknownst to you, warmth suddenly bloomed in Loki’s chest, and you glanced up just in time to catch the fond, almost…loving gleam in his eye. He quickly looked away, tilting his head up to look at the stars, but you’d caught it. And it wasn’t that it unsettled you; you weren’t uncomfortable because of the look. You were uncomfortable because you _hadn’t_ been upset by it. You’d felt that same flutter once again as butterflies batted around your rib cage.

Nothing more was said as you turned the corner that led to your street, and you silently ascended your home’s steps with Loki’s arm still around your shoulders. You reluctantly slid your key into the lock, only turning to him once your door was opened a crack.

“I had… A _really_ good time with you, Loki,” you told him, craning your neck to look into his eyes. “I know that this isn’t what you’re supposed to say to a guy after a first date; I know that it might scare you away. But I want you to know that I haven’t felt this way in a long… Actually, I’ve _never_ felt this way. And it’s really scary, but I hope… I hope we can do this again sometime soon.”

Loki’s eyes softened, and he moved his arm from around your shoulders to your cheek.

“I haven’t felt his way, either,” he murmured. “But I know that I don’t want the feeling to go away.”

He was leaning forward, his eyes closing, and your heart leapt into your throat as you met him halfway. His lips were cold, and smooth, and soft as they pressed against yours, and you leaned into his touch when he pulled you closer by your hips. A sound escaped your throat as his tongue darted out, licking past the barrier of your mouth to glide itself against yours. His hands came up to cradle your cheeks, his thumbs rubbing against your cheekbones as your lips moved against one another, and you hummed once again as your chests pressed together.

You don’t know who pulled away first, but you spent a moment just taking in one another’s essence, your foreheads pressed together as the fog of your breaths mingled. You heard Loki let out a chuckle, and you looked up curiously.

“What is it?”

“I’ve just…” He licked his lips and let out another soft laugh before pulling away.

“I’ve just never felt like this before,” he repeated.

You smiled and pressed a peck to his lips before walking towards your door again.

“Have a good night, love,” he called after you, and you paused in the doorway to blow him a kiss.

“You too, Loki.”

You shut your door, missing the way his gaze darkened as he stared at the façade of your building.

“Oh, I will, darling. I will.”

__________

Loki hummed to himself, the leather of his gloves squeaking as he clenched and unclenched his fists. The silver of the table gleamed under the fluorescent lights of his basement, and the air was musty, thick with the smell of iron…and decay. Instruments and tools were lined along the wall in front of him - knives, machetes, a hatchet… It was cliché; he knew that. But he just hadn’t been able to resist the temptation while designing this special room.

A muffled scream sounded from behind him, and he rolled his eyes before turning back to the perky little barista who was currently strapped down to another metal table he’d “borrowed” from the hospital morgue.

“Are you honestly still trying to scream for help?” he snarked, raising an eyebrow at her. “I’ve told you; you’re currently under about five feet of solid concrete. Who will hear you? Who will help you?”

The girl let out a sob, and he watched her big blue eyes flicker to the wall just over his shoulder before coming to rest on him again. They were red and swollen, and he let out a coo of false sympathy.

“Oh, don’t worry, little girl. None of these are for you.” He grinned, turning back to the table behind him. “You can thank my new lover for that. No, she inspired me to take a different direction this evening.”

A small, genuine smile came over his face as he picked up the large syringe, turning it over in his hands.

“She’s been inspiring me for a while, actually,” he mused, ignoring the screams as he sauntered over to his victim, syringe in hand. “She’s such a brilliant writer, my darling is. It truly was fate that brought us together; if I’d had known that my favorite author was a beautiful young woman who also lived in Manhattan, well… I’m sure I would have found her sooner. But I won’t dwell on lost time; I’ll just have to make up for it.”

He ran a hand over the girl’s knee, trailing it down her shin even as she struggled against the strong ropes twined around her wrists and ankles. As his hand gripped the arch of her foot in an iron-like hold, he let his eyes close. This was always his favorite part – the moments right before death. The anticipation was like foreplay; it got him just as hot and eager, and the payoff was very nearly comparable. If he were ever asked to describe the feeling of ending another person’s life, of ripping out the remaining chapters from their story before it could be written, the only thing he’d be able to compare it to was an orgasm. That white-hot pleasure that flooded his veins was addictive, as was the lead up he was experiencing right now.

“You know,” he mused, slowly drawing back the plunger of the syringe, “my girl is so smart… Not a lot of people would think to off someone like this. But it’s not as easy as you would think; you can’t just use any old syringe. It has to be big, has to be a lot of air. And you have to be careful; if you hit muscle, it won’t be fatal, and the whole endeavor would be for naught. But if you hit a vein, and if you get a big enough pocket of air…”

The duct tape on her mouth did little to quell her scream as he inserted the needle into her flesh. A novice might not be able to find a vein, especially not in a foot, but the years of medical school paid off, just as they did every day at his job. He injected the empty cartridge into her vein, groaning and letting his eyes drift shut. He was slow about removing the needle; the separation of steel from skin was slow, intimate… Gentle.

“Hush…” he whispered, drawing out the word with a hiss. “It’s done now, love. It’s done.”

He let his arm fall to the side, and he took a step back, watching the girl start to settle down as he put some distance between them. He gently set the syringe down onto the table before crossing the room to the armchair in the corner. Letting out a soft grunt, he lowered himself into the seat, crossing his legs and letting his head fall back.

“Fuck, what a day,” he sighed. “This isn’t what I was expecting when I woke up this morning.”

Loki lifted his head and gave the young girl a wry smile.

“As you may have guessed, this isn’t my first time doing something like this,” he began. “But I do try to limit myself. I may take…five victims a year. Maybe six or seven if I’m particularly stressed. My last one was on New Year’s, though. I’m not due for a killing for another few months, but… That girl really had me going.

“I was hoping that she’d invite me in tonight,” he confessed. “Though I wasn’t expecting it. It _was_ our first date, after all. But a man can hope, can’t he? If she _had_ invited me to stay the night, you wouldn’t be here right now. Alas, though… I had all of these pent up feelings that I had to do _something_ with. And you were so… _obnoxious_ back at the café. I couldn’t tell if you were being genuine with your disgusting, overbearing cheerfulness or if it was as fake as your blonde hair. But, god, did it get under my skin…”

The girl let out a sob, and he noticed that she was beginning to shake. He chuckled, feeling himself grow hard in his trousers as he thought of you. _You’d_ come up with this idea, this beautiful, drawn-out murder. Such a sweet, innocent looking girl on the outside. But such delicious, pure wickedness within.

“Fuck,” he huffed, palming himself through his pants. “Despite the nuisance you made of yourself, today was so perfect… She’s the One, you know. The one and only girl who can ever complete me. I didn’t even believe in this sort of thing this morning, but for the first time in my life, I’m glad I was wrong.”

He forced himself to still his hand, moving it to his knee as his jaw clenched. In the past, he’d done this in front of a few of his victims; male or female, if they were pretty, young things, the act of killing them made him so hard that he had to touch himself as he watched them squirm on his table. But not tonight, not after you. That part of himself was _only_ for you, now, and he was strong enough to resist the urge until his was the only heart beating under his roof.

And so he sat back and watched. At first, the girl only shivered, and after thirty minutes he was afraid that he hadn’t injected enough air into her. But then he noticed the way she was breathing; it was like she was a fish out of water, and the slope of her furrowed eyebrows betrayed the pain she was in.

“Does it hurt?” he asked, voice thick. At first she didn’t answer, but then, almost imperceptibly, she nodded. He hummed in understanding, hiding his grin behind his hand as he scratched his chin.

“How marvelous.”

He knew she wouldn’t last long when her skin started to turn blue. After an hour, the seizures began, jolting and shaking her body as if she were a ragdoll. He watched in fascination, his cold, blue eyes never leaving her tied-up form. Soft, strained whimpers were leaving her throat, and he let out a purr as her eyes rolled to the back of her head.

His joints popped as he stood up, and the heels of his shoes clicked against the concrete floor as he rounded the table, making his way to her pretty blonde head. He slowly, deliberately pulled the duct tape away from her mouth, and he chuckled at how blue her lips had become.

“This is a much better look on you,” he observed. “This is so much more real than those saccharine smiles.” 

She finally went still 84 minutes after the injection. Even after her heart stopped beating, he stood over her, watching the unnatural stillness of her chest. Despite all of the corpses he’d created over the years, and despite the years he’d spent in his profession, it was still something that he’d never gotten used to. People weren’t supposed to be that still; people were supposed to blink, and smile, and talk, and breathe, but the things they became after death did none of those things. They didn’t move, and they didn’t feel, and there was always a moment of disgust when he first laid eyes on a fresh corpse.

But it passed quickly, even quicker than normal tonight. The disgust faded away and left behind pure, unadulterated lust as his thoughts strayed once more to you. Typically, he would stay behind, lingering in the basement to dispose of the body. Sometimes, if he wasn’t too tired, he would actually drive out and deposit them in whatever spot he’d predetermined to be the one the police were to find them in.

But tonight, he left the corpse there on the table. He flicked the lights off and climbed the first, then the second set of stairs, peeling off his gloves and petting his cat on the way to his bedroom. He showered, then combed his hair, then settled down between his silk sheets completely naked. Then, and only then, did his hand travel down to his cock, and his mind once again, indubitably, trekked back to you. Your face, your voice, your beautiful fucking mind…

The thought that finally made him cum was the picture of him fucking you in a pool of blood on his basement floor, of the bright crimson painting your skin as he let his hands worship your body. The thought followed him into his dreams, ruby red and throbbing to the beat of his heart as he slept deeply into the night.

_____________

Detective Romanoff stood side by side with her partner in front of the dead body, hands planted firmly on her hips as she chewed her lip.

“How old did you say she was?” she asked the coroner, her eyes flicking down to the rope burn on the woman’s – the _girl’s_ – wrists and ankles.

“Twenty,” was Dr. Odinson’s accented reply. He turned around, glancing between the two detectives before taking a deep breath and turning his attention back to the body. “I’m afraid that there won’t be much investigating for the two of you to do here. The cause of death was a heart attack, pure and simple.”

“A twenty year old girl having a heart attack?” Detective Rogers scoffed. “I think you got your wires crossed, there, Loki.”

Natasha watched as a muscle in the coroner’s jaw twitched, and he let out a frustrated huff as he peeled off his medical gloves.

“Detective, this sort of thing happens all the time – freak accidents that can strike even the healthiest of people. They are…unfortunate, but they’re also a fact of life.” He tossed the balled up gloves into a trash can and whisked past them, bending over to type something into the laptop resting on his desk as he continued speaking to them.

“After reviewing her medical records, I found out that her father died two years ago from a heart attack; if I were a gambling man, I would say that a bad set of genes were the only culprit here.”

“What about the marks on her wrists?” Natasha asked. “They gotta mean something, right?”

“Oh, I’m sure they do,” Loki smirked, cutting his eyes over at her before straightening up. “It probably means that little Miss…” He paused, glancing down at a paper resting beside his computer. “Miss Allison Berry was into bondage before her untimely demise.”

“A woman is lying dead, Odinson,” Rogers spat. “Show some respect.”

Loki raised his hands up in surrender as he sauntered towards them.

“I apologize if I offended you, Detective,” he replied coolly. “I meant no disrespect. But I’ve run all the tests in the book. There were no signs of sexual assault, no signs of foul play. I’ll type up a proper report for the two of you, but I’m telling you now – the girl died of a heart attack.”

Natasha and Steve shared a look before turning back to the doctor.

“Have the report ready for us before the end of the day,” she ordered, patting Steve on the shoulder and gesturing for him to follow her as she made her way out of the cold morgue.

“Whatever you say, Officer.”

Natasha froze mid-step, feeling the hairs on the back of her neck bristle as a thousand images flashed through her mind after hearing him say that word. She gulped, oblivious to the confused look Steve was giving her, and she kept walking without turning back around.

“It’s Detective, now, doctor.”

The door clicked shut behind them, cutting off Loki’s dark chuckle as he was once again was left alone with Allison Berry’s body. His smile didn’t fade as he pulled on another pair of gloves; if anything, it grew as he finished the young woman’s autopsy.

“I _was_ being honest with them; you know that, don’t you?” He winked at the girl’s unseeing eyes, his hands moving of their own accord as he stitched up the clean line he’d cut through the skin, bone, and muscle of her chest.

“It _was_ just a heart attack.”


	2. Chapter Two

Your bottom lip was bright red from how ferociously you’d been chewing on it. The menu in your hands was crumpled from where you’d been gripping it, and your thigh was starting to feel sore from how fast your knee was bouncing under the table.

Another glance at your phone revealed the time to be 12:14, and your heart fluttered with a fresh wave of anxiety; you and Loki had agreed to meet at noon, and he didn’t seem like the type to be late. What if your first date with him _hadn’t_ gone as well as you’d hoped? What if you were going to be sitting here, alone, for the next hour or so, waiting for a date who had no intention of showing up? What if-

Your musings were drowned out by a flood of relief when you saw the man in question walk through the bistro’s doors, and immediately you chided yourself on being so paranoid. His crystalline eyes scanned the small restaurant until they finally fell on you, and his face lit up when your gazes met.

Your heart squeezed as he started walking towards you, and you slowly scanned him up and down as he made his way to your table. Today, he was dressed in charcoal grey trousers with a light green shirt tucked into them, and though you knew it was silly, you couldn’t help but grin when you saw the briefcase he was holding. How professional.

“I am,” he huffed, sitting down across from you, “ _so_ sorry for being late. The police strolled in today ten minutes before my break with a body they’d dredged up from the Hudson this morning.”

“Just another day at the office, then?” you joked, and he chuckled under his breath.

“When you’re in my line of work, yes.”

“Well, it’s ok. You could’ve called to cancel if your work needed your attention-“

“No,” he shook his head resolutely. “I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind since the café. Nothing was going to make me miss this.”

Your cheeks felt even hotter, and you tried to hide your enormous smile behind your menu. A cold hand wrapped around one of your wrists, and you glanced up as Loki pulled your hand to rest in his on the tabletop. You shared a small, almost shy, smile with him before your waiter approached.

“Good afternoon,” he greeted the two of you. “My name is John; I’ll be taking care of you guys today. May I start out with your drink orders?”

After you’d placed your order of iced tea and Loki had requested a water with lemon, you sat your menu down and turned to him.

“So… How have the past three days been for you?” you asked, and Loki’s eyes flicked up from the menu as he answered.

“Busy. But not unmanageable; the police have been particularly obnoxious this week, but then again, New York’s finest have always been a pain in the arse.”

You chuckled and took a sip of your tea.

“Well… I’m sorry they’ve been giving you a hard time.”

“It’s fine; after all, that’s what they do best.” Having apparently decided on what he’d have for lunch, your date set his menu on top of yours and squeezed your hand. “How about _you_ , though? Any new projects you’ve been working on?”

“Maybe,” you hummed. “I actually just sent the second draft of my latest novel to my publisher, so hopefully it’ll be on shelves in a few months’ time.”

Loki’s eyes lit up, and he leaned forward on his elbow.

“Oh? What is it about?”

You laughed at the eager look on his face and quirked an eyebrow.

“You don’t really want me to spoil it for you, do you?”

“Spoil it? No, but just a brief summary of the plot would be enough to satisfy your most dedicated reader. For now, at least.”

You pretended to think for it a moment, biting your lip and tilting your head to the side.

“Hm… I don’t know…”

Turning back toward Loki, you watched as he lifted the back of your hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to your knuckles as he winked at you.

“Please?” he asked, his voice just a note huskier than it had been a moment ago. “I can think of a few ways I could repay you…”

You swallowed, the cadence and timber of his voice going straight to your core, and you clenched your thighs at the implication of his words.

“Wh-what do you have in mind?” you stammered, and Loki gave you a knowing smirk.

“The only way to find out is if you tell me what I want to know,” he murmured.

Before you could say anything else, though, your waiter arrived with your drinks, and Loki’s eyes didn’t stray from you for even a moment, not even while he placed his order. You hoped the waiter hadn’t overheard your conversation as he walked up, and you stuttered your way through asking for the lunch special.

Once he was walking away, Loki’s smile stretched into a full-on, mischievous grin.

“I believe you had something you wanted to tell me, love?”

You blinked a few times and cleared your throat.

“Ah, yes. So,” you started, “the title I finally settled on is _Cracked Glass_ , and it’s about two detectives who are partners – their names are Smithback and Charles. And the premise of the story is that one of them is a serial killer who keeps dropping bodies all over Chicago, but you don’t know which one is the killer until the very end. I’m actually pretty excited about it! My editor said that it’s her favorite of my works to date.”

Loki grinned, setting his chin in his palm while tracing your knuckles with the thumb of his other hand.

“That sounds incredibly intriguing, my dear,” he praised. “I’m guessing that there’s a plot twist of epic proportions at the end?”

“Well, I don’t like to brag, but…” You trailed off with a laugh, shrugging. “I just hope people like it. Especially my ‘most dedicated reader’.”

“I know that I’ll adore it, just as I have all your other works,” he assured you.

After that, the two of you made small talk until your food came. You found out that Loki’s favorite color was green, that he had a black cat named Lovecraft, and that his brother was planning a trip to New York to come visit him.

“We decided on May,” Loki informed you, “which gives me two months to prepare myself mentally for the onslaught that is Thor Odinson.”

“I’m sure he’s not _that_ bad,” you chuckled, and Loki gave you a skeptical look.

“My brother once ate two entire rotisserie chickens in one setting while singing ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ drunkenly with his group of Neanderthalic friends,” he deadpanned. “We were twenty-eight at the time, and he’d consumed… I want to get the number right; I think it was _twelve_ Jaeger Bombs.”

You almost choked on your tea from laughing so hard, and the smile he gave you was so genuine, so full of affection, that it made your heart swell almost painfully in your chest.

After finishing your meal, Loki insisted on paying the bill, and the two of you walked out of the bistro arm in arm. It was a beautiful, albeit cold, day in Manhattan. The sun was shining; the birds were singing; a saxophone player could be heard performing on a nearby street corner.

“It’s days like this that make me fall in love with New York,” you sighed, tilting your head back as the wind whipped through your hair.

Loki’s eyes followed the curve of your neck as you tilted your head towards the sky, and he licked his lips as he imagined wrapping his hand around it. He wouldn’t do any permanent damage, of course; he would sooner destroy a stained glass window than take the life of the woman he was already madly in love with. But his cock twitched at the thought of you walking around with bruises he’d painted across your body, starting with that elegant neck…

“Loki?”

He cleared his throat, snapping out of his reverie as you raised your eyebrow expectantly at him.

“I’m sorry, darling, did you say something?” he asked distractedly, and you chuckled before repeating yourself.

“I asked when you have to be back to work,” you said, and Loki glanced down at his watch.

“In about twenty minutes,” he sighed. “But the hospital is only a fifteen minute walk away.”

You hesitated, debating whether or not to ask the question that had popped into your head. You didn’t want to seem desperate, but at the same time, you didn’t want your date with Loki to end just yet.

“Would it be ok if I, um…walked with you to the hospital? If it’s ok,” you quickly added. “If you would rather have the time to yourself, then I can head home. It’s just-“

You were cut off by Loki’s lips as they pressed against yours, and you smiled as you sunk into the kiss, resting your hands on his chest as he nipped lightly at your bottom lip.

“Of course you can,” he whispered, running one of his hands through your hair. “I would leave work early, if I could, to spend the rest of the day with you.”

You grinned and stood up on your tiptoes to peck his lips again, warmth blooming within you.

“Okay…”

Reaching down, you laced your fingers through his as he started off in the direction of the hospital, and the walk was mostly silent as you took in the sights and sounds of the city around you. People were milling about busily, oblivious to you as you watched them. Loki, for his part, was too focused on how warm your hand felt in his and how good your hair smelled when the breeze carried its scent in his direction. This was only his second date with you, but you were already driving him mad; he’d never desired another person this way before. All of his previous attractions had been fleeting and superficial, but your mind drew him in like a moth to flame.

Before either of you knew it, the Bellevue Hospital Center was rising before you, a monolith of brick and glass, and you couldn’t help but feel intimidated by it. After all, it was one of the oldest hospitals in the city; Loki must have been fantastic at his job to be able to work in such a prestigious establishment.

“This is the office,” he joked, leading you in past the front doors.

You weren’t able to form a response as you stepped into the modern entry hall of the hospital. Curved walkways lay overhead, and the walls and ceiling were mostly made of glass. People were milling about everywhere, not sparing the two of you a single glance as they went about their business.

“Wow…”

Loki chuckled at your wonder, stopping next to a set of elevators as he rummaged through his pocket. You glanced down to see him pull out an ID card with his name, picture, and the words ‘Medical Examiner’ in bold font on it.

“I’ve never been to such a fancy looking hospital,” you admitted.

“After a while, it gets old,” he admitted, glancing around with an unimpressed look on his face. “It’s big and expensive, yes, but it nearly takes me twenty minutes just to walk from my office to the cafeteria.”

The two of you shared a laugh, oblivious to the detectives who had paused too look at you. Natasha turned to Steve, both of them shocked at seeing Loki actually laughing with someone. Not just someone – a pretty young woman who was currently holding his hand.

“I…don’t think I’ve ever seen him genuinely smile,” Rogers mused, and Natasha quirked an eyebrow, and unreadable expression on her face.

“Neither have I…”

They watched as you leaned up to press a kiss to Loki’s cheek, and something in Natasha stirred at the sight, something that hinted at feelings she’d never even considered having towards Dr. Odinson.

“I’ll text you tonight,” Loki said, oblivious to the officers staring at him from across the room. “Maybe we can do something this weekend? After all, I still need to repay you for letting me in on what your new masterpiece is about.”

Your cheeks heated up, and you playfully rolled your eyes.

“I definitely wouldn’t call it a masterpiece,” you insisted humbly.

“Mm, we’ll agree to disagree on that, love.”

You made to pull away, but Loki’s grip on you tightened, making you turn back to him curiously.

“Before you leave,” he murmured, “can I ask you another morbid question?”

“Of course,” you laughed. “I’m always up for one of those.”

Loki’s thumb traced your knuckles as he spoke to you in a hushed tone.

“Last time, you told me how you’d kill someone out of necessity,” he said, a twinkle of mischief alight in his eyes. “Tell me how you would kill someone who deserves to die. Maybe someone who’d done bad things to innocent people.”

You chuckled at the sincerity of the question; if it was anybody else, you’d be worried. But this was Loki; he had a morbid career just like you, and you knew better than to put any thought into his question.

“Is this going to become a game between us?” you giggled. “Exchanging ideas for murder?”

Loki snickered at the question.

“It can be, if you’d permit it.”

“Oh, I’m always down for some homicide.” You thought about it for a moment, biting your bottom lip in contemplation. “I guess… I would probably drown them. I’m not the strongest person in the world, but if you put someone in a bathtub and hold their legs up, it’s nearly impossible for them to right themselves. And, plus, it’s definitely not a painless way to die, so whatever horrible things they did will be paid for, I suppose.”

Loki nodded, filing away the information for later use.

“Elegant,” he praised, and you playfully bowed your head.

“I aim to please.”

After you said your goodbyes, the two of you parted ways, oblivious to the detectives still watching you. They were too far away to overhear your conversation, but both of them were intrigued to see Loki seemingly happy with someone.

As you walked out of the hospital, your eyes caught a flash of red hair, and you turned to see a drop-dead gorgeous redhead standing next to an equally attractive blonde man. Typically, you wouldn’t of given them a second glance, but… They were both watching you. Intently.

For a moment, you faltered in your step, the distinct feeling of being watched prickling at your scalp. But then the blonde man smiled at you and politely inclined his head, the way two strangers might do if they were both in line at a coffee shop.

You hesitantly returned his smile before walking out the doors, still feeling unsettled by the exchange. Because despite the friendly gesture of the man, the woman with him hadn’t even faltered in her stare. She’d just continued to watch you impassively, her arms crossed against her chest and her lips pressed firmly together.

The couple left your mind soon enough, though, and after sitting in a cab for twenty minutes, you were once again in your comfy townhome. You spent the rest of the afternoon in front of your computer, an empty word document open before you. It was true that you’d just finished up your latest work, but you knew you couldn’t get to comfortable. Bills would continue to come in whether or not you felt inspired, and though you had a comfortable cushion of money in the bank, you still didn’t want to get too comfortable.

And so, you’d decided to move on to the next project. But what would you write about?

Your mind, indubitably, strayed to Loki once more, turning over the last few minutes of conversation you’d had that day. He was so…elegant, with just a hint of a sinister edge that you were sure had come from his work. You were intrigued by his career, truth be told. How couldn’t you be? You’d written about death for years, now. But he’d lived it; he’d touched it.

And it was that thought that sent your fingers typing away at your keyboard.

 _It wasn’t that she’d chosen to live on the line between life and death; she liked to think that death had chosen_ her _to be among its closest of companions, shaping her since her youth to be the walking Death Knoll that she’d become…_

___________

Loki didn’t consider himself to be a full-on sociopath, but it was typically hard for him to empathize with others. Or, rather, it wasn’t that it was _difficult_ for him; it was that most of the time he simply didn’t care to try to feel sympathy for other people.

But even he had some broken semblance of a moral compass, and no matter how dark his inner feelings grew, he knew that he would never be able to harm a child. Unfortunately, not everyone agreed with that particular sentiment, but at least he could do something about it.

He stayed late at the hospital two days after your lunch date, that familiar hunger within him having only grown since seeing you again. Usually, he could keep the beast under control, but something about you fanned the flames within him until he felt as if he’d burn alive if he didn’t do something, anything, to satiate them.

And so he found himself sneaking into the pediatric ward at 7 pm, just as the day-shift nurses were finishing up and the night-shift nurses were starting to take their place. A pair of deep purple gloves clung to his hands, and he was careful not to make too much noise as he snuck into one of the doctor’s offices. He went down the hallway, trying three before he found one left unlocked. HIPAA would have a field day if they only knew…

From there, he searched the room for a password to the computer, not surprised to see it written on a sticky note hidden beneath the keyboard. Whoever this doctor was, Loki made a mental note not to trust him with any of his medical records.

Taking a seat at the desk, he located the file of patients seen that day, scrolling through them for what he was looking for. A case of the flu, a sick stomach, an allergic reaction – no, no, no. He let out a huff of frustration as he pulled up patients seen the day before, then the day after that, looking for something he could use.

And that was when he saw poor little Annie Rineback.

He pulled up a picture of the five year old, frowning when he saw the deep purple bruise around her left eye. Loki skimmed through her vitals, scrolling down the page until he pulled up the doctor’s and nurse’s notes.

 _Patient refused to say anything in regard to how she’d received her injury. Pt’s mother insisted that Annie fell down while playing in their yard, but could not answer specific questions as to what specifically had caused pt’s injuries_ , the nurse had written.

 _Suspected case of abuse_ , the doctor had followed up in his own records. _When asked, pt’s mother said that her husband had been at work during the time of the incident, though I have my own personal suspicions. Will call pt’s mother in a week to follow-up._

Loki made quick work of retrieving the little Annie’s address before closing out of the browser and locking the computer once more. After doing a quick scan of the room to make sure he’d left no trace, he made his way out, a sinister smirk on his face.

Time to get to work.

_________

It was Friday night when Loki got your call. His heart leapt with joy upon seeing your name flash across his screen, and he didn’t even hesitate as he answered.

“Hello, beautiful.”

Your own heart contorted upon hearing his voice; it had been Tuesday when you’d gone on your little lunch date, and the two of you had been texting each other at every opportunity ever since. But his voice just _did_ things to you; you would always prefer it to texting.

“Hey, Loki. How’s it going?”

“Oh, same old, same old,” he replied, glancing around his basement. He’d recently dusted the space and sprayed it down with linen-scented air freshener, and he was quite happy with the result. The knives and saws gleamed against their white pegboard, and if he walked over to the examination table resting in its middle, he’d be able to see his reflection in its surface.

The only thing out of place was the large tub of water he’d dragged into the room. Well, that and the woman he had tied up in the corner. She was still passed out from the blow he’d landed to the back of her head, and he’d preemptively gagged her for whenever she woke up; his ears were still ringing from the way she’d screamed when he grabbed her in the alleyway near her apartment.

“How about you, darling?” he asked, leaning back against the metal sink behind him. “How’s the new book coming along?”

“It’s actually going really well; you’ve been quite the source of inspiration.”

Loki grinned widely, knowing that he must have looked like an infatuated schoolboy as his heart fluttered. But he didn’t care; the only person who could have seen the effect you had on him was currently passed out, and even if she hadn’t been, she would be soon.

“Really? _I’m_ inspiring _you_? How so?”

“Well… The latest character in my book _might_ be a suave, attractive medical examiner.”

His heart swelled at the idea of her basing one of her characters off of him, especially since he truly did love her work so much. He swallowed thickly before replying, internally berating himself for being such a sap.

“Oh? And do I have anything else in common with this fellow?”

“Not really. _She_ also happens to be a woman. And she kills people, so… Yeah. I sure _hope_ she doesn’t!”

Loki laughed along with you even as he cut his eyes towards his soon-to-be victim.

“Ehehe, yes. Well, I can’t wait to read all about her.”

His eyes widened when he saw Annie’s mom start to stir against her bonds, and he immediately straightened up.

“Hey, love?” he suddenly said. “Could I call you back in half an hour or so? I just got a text from Thor to call him, and I’d better make sure he isn’t setting something on fire.”

“Oh, sure thing,” you assured him, hoping that you hadn’t bothered him. “I’m sorry for calling at a bad time…”

“No, love, don’t apologize! I want nothing more than to hear your lovely voice,” Loki promised. “I’m just paranoid when it comes to Thor.”

You softened at that, letting the doubt you’d started to feel seep out of you.

“You’re a good brother, Loki,” you smiled. “I understand. Just give me a call back whenever you can.”

“I will,” he stated. “It shouldn’t take longer than thirty minutes.” He watched as the woman he had tied up started to blink her eyes open, and he knew that he needed to go before she started with her incessant screaming again.

“I’ll call you right back,” he said once more.

“Okey, doke. Bye, Loki!”

“Goodbye, love.”

Not a moment after he’d hung up, the woman made a small noise of panic, which amplified into a full-on wail once she saw the wall of torture devices Loki had constructed. With a roll of his eyes, and shoved his phone back into his pocket and marched over to her, kneeling down to her level to grip her throat.

“If you don’t shut up,” he growled, “I will cut off your fingers and toes one by one until you have nothing but bloody stumps left. Do you want that?”

The woman’s mascara was tracking down her cheeks, staining the rope that was currently gagging her, and after a few sniveling gasps she nodded her head.

“Good. Now,” Loki continued, “let me explain your current situation. You are in my basement right now under layers of concrete and insulation. This room is locked and sound-proof, and I live alone. No one will come to help you, and no one knows where you are.

“Now, I have a few questions to ask you, so I’m going to take your gag off. But,” he added when he saw the woman perk up, “if you start with that screaming again, I will slit your throat and call it a day. And neither of us want that, now do we?”

Once again, the woman shook her head, and Loki gave her a tight smile.

“Very good.”

He reached out and gripped the rope, tugging it out from between her teeth until it rested loosely around her neck. To her credit, she didn’t scream as he’d expected her to, nor did she persist in struggling against her bonds as she had been a moment before.

“Hm. Very good,” Loki praised as he stood up.

“Are you going to kill me?” the woman asked, looking up at him with pleading, tearful eyes. “Please,” she continued after a moment of silence, “please, I have a family.”

At that, Loki threw his head back and laughed.

“Oh, Mrs. Rineback, I’m aware,” he chuckled. “In fact, that’s exactly what I had questions about.

“See, I don’t have children,” he mused, starting to pace in front of her. “Nor do I think I ever will. But I do understand the general concept. You’re supposed to love your children unconditionally and care for them, nurture them, blah blah blah… But you, Mrs. Rineback, you do none of those things, now do you?”

The woman’s face grew guarded upon hearing that, and she stiffened.

“I… I don’t know what you-“

“Oh, don’t insult me,” Loki scoffed. “I already know all of your dirty little secrets. Poor little Annie… Originally, I’d started researching her, believing that maybe her father really hadn’t been at work the day she was brought into the hospital with a black eye and bruised rib. That was what the doctor assumed to be the case, at least.

“But all too often, the mother is overlooked as the possible abuser, is she not?”

Loki stood still in front of her, watching as horror started to fill her gaze. He took a moment to enjoy this intoxicating moment of complete power; he could get off on this alone.

“Yes, Mrs. Rineback,” he cooed. “I know. I know _everything_. I know of what you’ve put Annie through, and I know what you put little Micah through before his…untimely end.”

A whimper escaped her upon hearing her son’s name, and she looked away, no doubt feeling hot shame wash over her.

“Micha…fell down a flight of stairs,” she whispered. “It was an _accident_!”

“Oh, I have no doubt that he fell down some stairs. But I very much doubt that it was an accident.”

Silence hung heavily between them, until the click of his shoes accompanied his steps as he approached her.

“Tell me – how do you sleep at night with the murder of your seven year old son looming over your head? Evidently, not too restlessly, if you _still_ continue to abuse your remaining child-“

“Stop!” she suddenly shouted, bowing her head. “Stop, please; I’m a _good mother_. I… I love my child. I loved… I loved Micah.”

“But that doesn’t stop you from drinking, now does it?” he snarled. “I only watched you for a day before knowing I wouldn’t be able to stomach another. Do you always start drinking with your breakfast?”

She didn’t look up at him, and he watched with a sneer as her shoulders shook with her sobs. He knelt down beside her, gripping her throat once more and forcing her to meet his eyes.

“You,” he whispered, “repulse me.”

With that, he hauled her to her feet, ignoring the way she writhed and twisted in his grip. Her attempts at fleeing were borderline laughable as he neared the tub, and with a kick to the back of her knee she was kneeling before it.

“The world will not miss you,” he assured her, twisting a hand in her hair and yanking until she was halfway in the water. “Nor will your family.”

And with that, he shoved her in, dropping to his knees and flipping her onto her back. Her restrained arms twisted, and most of her weight was placed upon her tied hands where they rested against her lower back as Loki grabbed her ankles.

From there, it was only a matter of time. He stood up, keeping her legs in the air, as she floundered under the water. It was delightful to watch her at this angle, and Loki once again said a silent _thank you_ for the idea. He could clearly see her face as she fought towards the surface, resembling a fish flopping around on a pier as she struggled.

It didn’t take long before her harried motions started to slow down, though, and Loki almost was disappointed as the fight left her. He watched her chest expand as she took in a large lungful of water, and the sputters she made were music to his ears. And disappointment he had faded when she went completely motionless, and in her last moments, she opened her eyes and looked up at him through the haze. Even through the ripples in the water, he could distinguish the moment that she knew she was about to die, and the fear within her gaze was euphoric to him. He wondered, for a moment, if she was afraid of waking up in hell, even though he’d long since dismissed the idea of such fanciful, religious notions.

When he was finally sure that she was dead, he let go of his grip on her legs and took a step back, glancing down in disgust at the water that had gotten on his clothes. But, then again, he typically left his basement covered in blood, so this was amongst the cleanest ways he’d killed one of his victims.

Ten minutes later, he was in his bed, stroke Lovecraft as she laid against his side. He’d cleaned up and put on some sweatpants before settling in to call you, and butterflies flapped around his chest just at the sight of your name in his phone.

“This is ridiculous,” he huffed, sending a bemused glance towards his cat. “I’m a thirty-six year old man – I’m a fucking _serial killer_ – and this woman already has me wrapped around her finger.”

His cat only blinked slowly up at him, not caring in the slightest about his internal distress, and with a small smile, he pressed the call button.

Meanwhile, you were in bed yourself, reading a book you’d picked up from the store a few days ago, when you heard your ringtone. With a squeal, you all but threw your book down and accepted the call, a huge smile on your face as you answered.

“Hello, again.”

“Hello, darling. Sorry again about earlier.”

“No, it’s fine! I totally get it. How is everything with Thor?”

“Thor is fine,” he smiled. “He needed my help installing photoshop on his computer. Why he needs photoshop, I’ll never know, but I walked him through it and now I only have a _mild_ headache from the endeavor.”

“I really need to meet your brother in person. Just wait until I tell him all the things you’ve been saying.”

“I assure you, it’s nothing I haven’t told him directly in person. But he’s gotten me back a few times, despite his incompetence. One time, he tried to sell me on Craigslist.”

“Oh, no! That’s…that’s actually hilarious.”

“Mm, well. The concerning thing was that I had a few interested parties.”

You both laughed at that, and after a while you were both left in an almost awkward silence.

“So…” you finally began nervously. “I was wondering if you’re free tomorrow.”

“As a matter of fact, I am,” Loki said. “Did you have anything in mind for us?”

“Well… I was wondering if you would like to come over and be seduced by my cooking skills.”

“I think it’s fair to say that you’ve already seduced me,” he chuckled. “But I would love to. Can I bring anything?”

“Just yourself! …And actually, a bottle of wine would be awesome.”

“Then I’ll pick one up on the way.”

You grinned, sitting up in bed.

“Well, then. I’ll plan on seeing you tomorrow, Dr. Odinson.”

There was something about the way you said his title that made Loki’s cock twitch in his pants, and he absentmindedly reached down to give it a squeeze.

“I’ll look forward to it,” he breathed.

As soon as the two of you said your goodbyes, Loki practically leapt out of bed and hopped into the shower, both to wash the scent of Mrs. Rineback’s cheap perfume off of him and to quell his sudden lust for you. He couldn’t help but wonder what exactly you had in mind for tomorrow; he wasn’t sure how long he would be able to wait until he all but threw you onto the nearest horizontal surface and fucked your brains out. The way you made him feel was unlike anything he’d ever experienced, and he could only hope that you felt the same way.

Meanwhile, miles away, you were looking at the new set of lingerie you’d bought that evening as it lay atop your dresser. You closed your eyes and let yourself fall back against your pillows, fantasizing about the look on Loki’s face when he saw you in the dark green bra and panties you’d picked out just for him. A hand slipped into your pajama shorts at the thought, and unbeknownst to either of you, you both came at almost the same time that evening, your minds focused on the exact same thing.

Tomorrow night.


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I hope you enjoy this update! Just as a warning, this chapter is basically 90% smut, so be warned! It's important smut, though! Porn with a smidge of plot. :)

You did a once-over of your home one more time, wanting to make sure everything was perfect before your guest arrived. You’d cleaned everything top to bottom, taking the majority of the day to make sure everything was just so – you’d even _dusted_ , something you’d never really bothered with before. But your hard work was worth it; everything was all but gleaming, and the whole house smelled of lemon and fresh linen.

Right at 6:30, you heard your doorbell ring, and you felt your pulse rate skyrocket. On the way to your front door, you glanced at yourself in the mirror, brushing an errant strand of your hair out of your face and smoothing down the front of your little black dress. You smiled at your reflection, thinking about the surprise you had in store for Loki under your clothes. The lingerie set had been on the pricier side of things, but you already knew that it had been worth it.

After taking a deep breath, you opened the door, feeling butterflies spring to life in your belly at the sight of your date. Loki was dressed in a pair of black trousers, a dark green button-down, and a black sports coat; your eyes trailed up and down his figure, lingering for a second on the golden watch that was looped around his wrist. It was the perfect accessory to his ensemble, and you were thankful that you’d decided to dress up for the evening.

“Hello, there,” you grinned, and Loki’s smile matched yours as he took in your appearance.

“Good evening,” he replied, stepping inside. He leaned down, pressing a chaste but lingering kiss to your lips, and though the date had only just begun, you were already left wanting for more. “You look ravishing, as always.”

“I could say the same about you.”

You looked down to his hands, just then noticing the bottle of wine he held in them. He followed your gaze, lifting it up so you could see the label.

“Ah, yes. I hope this will suffice; I didn’t know if you preferred red or white…”

“This is perfect,” you assured him. “But, if I’m being honest, I don’t really know all that much about wine. I do know that I like to drink it, though.”

For a moment, you were afraid that your admission would make you come across as uncultured, but Loki just chuckled.

“Well, that _is_ the most important thing when it comes to wine,” he remarked. “Dinner smells delicious, by the way.”

“I _did_ say I was going to seduce you with my cooking.” You took the bottle of wine from him and lead him into the dining room. You’d laid out a white cloth over your table, and there was a candle burning in its very center; you were very pleased with how romantic it made the room look. “Make yourself at home! I’ll go make our plates.”

“Nonsense, love. I insist on helping.”

“Oh, you really don’t have-“

“I insist,” he repeated.

“Well… That’s very sweet of you, Loki. Thank you.”

With that, you led him into your kitchen, setting out two glasses for your wine before pulling out some plates. After searching for recipes the night before, you’d found one for a pasta dish that you thought Loki might enjoy. It was among the more complicated things you’d cooked in your lifetime, but you were determined to impress your boyfriend. At least, you _thought_ he was your boyfriend. Significant other? …Man friend?

You busied yourself with scooping the pasta onto the plates while Loki opened the bottle of wine and began pouring glasses for the two of you.

“So,” he said, breaking the moment of silence. “How has the writing been coming along?”

“It’s going pretty well, I think,” you answered. “I sent my editor the first chapter of my new book and she loved it; she’s a close friend of mine, and she’s always good about being honest with me about my work.”

“I’m almost jealous that she gets to read it before I do,” he chuckled.

“Well, maybe I’ll let you take a peek sometime. How has work been going for you?”

“Oh… Same old, same old. No interesting deaths today. Just a few old ladies who died of heart failure. And one poor sap who died in a hit and run.”

“Oh, gosh,” you murmured. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

Loki shrugged, walking into the dining room to set your glasses down before coming back and taking his plate from you. You followed him with yours and took the seat across from his.

“Does it ever get to you?” you asked, watching as he took a sip of his wine. “Your job, that is. I couldn’t imagine dealing with death as intimately as you do.”

You took a sip from your own glass as he thought about his response, noting that he’d picked out a dry blend that you were sure would compliment the pasta well. If you’d followed the recipe the right way, at least.

“…I won’t lie,” Loki finally said. “Not to you; I know death should bother me more than it does. I’ve never been terrified of it, as some people are. Nor does it make me uncomfortable; even the most gruesome of the bodies I’ve autopsied haven’t so much as turned my stomach. But there _is_ a moment, when I first see a body, that always takes me off guard. The transition from being a living, breathing organism to becoming a lifeless, empty object, it’s always something humans perceive as unnatural. Even humans like me who work with corpses four days a week.”

You nodded your head, studying the man across from you as he twirled a bite of fettuccini onto his fork before popping it into his mouth. You waited with bated breath as he chewed and swallowed, but your worries were put to rest when he looked up at you with a smile.

“It’s wonderful, darling,” he chuckled. “You can relax.”

Your shoulders visibly slumped with relief, and both of you shared a laugh before digging into your meals in earnest. You turned over his words as you ate your first few bites, shaking your head and smiling to yourself.

“What is it?” he asked, arching a curious eyebrow.

“Just… You. You’re such a unique person, Loki,” you said. “You’re special. It’s not every day that I meet someone who isn’t at least a little concerned by the macabre stories I write. But _you_ , you actively enjoy them. Plus, it’s so rare to find someone who shares my morbid interests who isn’t, you know, a psychopath.”

Loki chuckled at that, and his eyebrows twitched upwards as he took a quick gulp of his wine.

“Ah, well,” he grinned. “I could always be one, you know. I might just have you fooled.”

You narrowed your eyes, setting your chin in your palm as you studied him.

“Mm… I suppose,” you conceded. “You could be the villain in my own story for all I know.”

You smiled, then, before turning back to your meal.

“But I don’t think you are,” you added, oblivious to the intensity in Loki’s eyes as he watched you.

The rest of the meal went by without much incident, and Loki once again insisted on helping you before starting to load the dishes into the dishwasher. You, for your part, surprised him by pulling a pie from the local bakery out of your fridge, and soon, the two of you were curled up on your sofa, each with a small slice of pie sitting on a plate in their hands.

You had the thought, as you were sitting there, that conversation was so much easier with Loki than you would’ve expected. On the surface, Loki seemed intimidating; he was always so put-together, and his wit was sharp enough to cut through anyone, but for some reason, as you sat there talking about everything and nothing, you didn’t feel the need to filter yourself at all with him.

…Or, maybe, that was just the second glass of wine talking.

“…It’s killing me inside, you know.”

You snapped to attention upon your date’s sudden declaration, and you frowned in confusion.

“What is-“

“Not knowing what you’re writing, other than it’s a story with a main character who you’ve admitted to basing off of me,” Loki clarified.

A smile came to your lips, and you chuckled as you scraped the edge of your fork across your plate, gathering the crumbs and filling left over from your pie onto your utensil before bringing it up to your lips. You watched as Loki’s gaze settled onto your mouth as you licked up the last of your dessert, and you couldn’t help the smirk that spread over your face.

“Well,” you said, clearing your throat, “I suppose that I could let you read the first chapter…”

His eyes snapped up to yours once more, and eagerness was glittering in them, along with a deeper, smoldering feeling that made your breath catch in your lungs. 

“I would _love_ that, darling.”

And that was how you found yourself, a few minutes later, perched on top of your desk just to the right of your laptop, watching Loki as he read what you had written so far. You studied his profile as he leaned over your computer, a furrow forming between his brows as he concentrated on the screen. One of his hands was absentmindedly resting on your knee, tracing nonsensical patterns into your skin as you waited with bated breath. Your lip was already sore from how much you’d been chewing on it; you _really_ wanted him to like what you’d written. Maybe it hadn’t been a good idea to let him read it; what if-

“Darling, I… I love this,” he suddenly murmured, his head tilting back as he finally tore his gaze away from the words. “I think this might be my favorite beginning to any of the books you’ve written.”

You felt your cheeks heat up from his praise, and you looked away as you tried to fight the large smile that had come over your face.

“I… You don’t mean that,” you stammered, but Loki’s hand came up to cup your cheek, turning you back to face him. When you saw the look on his face, you felt your mouth go dry and your thighs press together; his smile had fallen, and he was focused solely, intensely, on you. There was a quiet desperation shimmering in his eyes, and you gulped as you felt yourself automatically straighten up.

“I _loved_ it, darling,” he uttered, sincerity evident from his tone. “The beginning of the chapter immediately made me feel captivated by Olivia, and the first killing scene immediately set the tone for the rest of the story.”

As he spoke, you watched as he slowly stood from his chair, and the breath caught in your lungs when he stepped between your legs. His hands were cold as they came to rest on your thighs, just below the hem of your dress, and you couldn’t stifle the gasp that left your lips when he abruptly shoved them apart, taking the opportunity to press his body against yours. Those same frigid fingers came up to brush against your neck, pushing your hair back so he could whisper against your ear.

“The way that she drew it out, torturing her victim in that controlled, calculative way…” His lips pressed a kiss to your cheek before he dragged them along your jaw line, and your eyes fluttered shut when you felt his breath settle over your lips.

“It shows you exactly what sort of a monster she is,” he finished, just seconds before his hands once again settled on your waist, pulling you towards him for a searing kiss.

 _Hungry_. That was the only word you could use to describe the way his mouth moved against yours. There was a feverish passion that seeped from him to you through the caress; you could taste it on his tongue, sweet and yet bitter at the same time, just like the wine you’d shared. His fingers were digging into your flesh, squeezing you as he pinned you against him, and you felt heat pool in your belly when he pressed his hips to yours; you could already feel his cock growing hard.

Loki’s tongue explored your mouth, tangling together with yours and gliding along the back of your teeth; he took his time with you, undoing every ounce of self-control you possessed as the seconds ticked away. For your part, you didn’t know where to put your hands; one moment, they were settled over his biceps. The next, they were in his hair or on his chest or clawing at his back as he ground his hips against yours.

A disappointed huff left your lips when Loki pulled away, and he arched his eyebrows, giving you a wicked grin.

“What is it?” he chuckled, his hands reaching for yours. You tried your best not to pout as he laced his fingers through yours, resting your connected hands on either side of your hips.

“I…” You hesitated, looking Loki up and down. A strand of hair was falling down into his eyes, and even though the expression on his face was one of confidence, you could see the way his chest was taking in ragged breaths, heaving in and out as he leaned over you; he wanted you just as badly as you wanted him. No doubt, the fire in your belly was burning in his, too, if the tent in his trousers was anything to go by.

“I… I want you to stay the night,” you breathed, and though it could have just been your imagination, you could have sworn that you saw his pupils dilate as you said it.

No words needed to be spoken before his lips were on yours again, and you smiled into the kiss, wrapping your arms around his neck. You broke away, though, when a startled gasp parted your lips as Loki suddenly gripped your hips and _pulled_ , wrapping your legs around his waist as he picked you up. You clutched his shoulders as he started walking out of your office, surprised that he could support your weight.

“How are you this strong?” you whispered under your breath, incredulous. You hadn’t even meant for Loki to hear you, really, but the upturn of his lips showed that he clearly did.

“I’m not as wiry as I look, believe it or not,” he snarked, pressing a kiss to the top of your head before making a beeline to your stairs. “I assume the bedroom is up here?”

You nodded, and he immediately headed upstairs, not even breaking a sweat despite having you in his arms. Once you reached the upstairs landing, you pointed towards your bedroom door, and he immediately darted towards it, nudging it open with his hip as he kissed you once more. You felt butterflies erupt in your belly as he walked with you towards the bed; this was finally going to happen. You were going to make love to Loki.

Your back hit the mattress harder than you’d expected, and you bounced against it a few times as Loki stood over you. You gulped, propping yourself up on your elbows and watching as Loki took his sports coat off, draping it over the chair you kept by your bedroom door.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” he suddenly asked, looking at you with a smirk as he started to unbutton his shirt. “Strip.”

Understanding washed over you, and you drew yourself up onto your knees, reaching behind you to lower the zipper of your dress. Loki stalked over, popping one button after another as, inch by inch, his pale torso was revealed to you. You could see that, despite how thin and tall he was, there was clear muscle definition to prove his strength, and your eyes lingered for a few seconds on the outline of his abs. The dark green of his shirt contrasted nicely with his natural pallor, and as you pulled your dress off over your head, you caught yourself wondering what his skin would look like with bruises left behind by your lips.

You paused, tossing your dress to the side as you knelt on the bed, and wondered where that thought had come from; you’d never felt particularly dominant in the bedroom. If anything, you’d always been more _submissive_. Why were you suddenly thinking about marking Loki up with hickeys?

Your thoughts were interrupted when you heard Loki suck in a breath through clenched teeth, and your eyes snapped to his as he took in the lingerie you were wearing. Its dark emerald lace hugged your curves delicately, and you knew that your breasts looked _fantastic_ in your bra. It was connected to a corset, which squeezed your waist in just the right way, making your figure look exquisite as you knelt in front of your date. Your panties were boy-cut, showing off your ass, and you were almost tempted to bend over, just so Loki could appreciate the view. But it seemed that your lover had other ideas as he stalked towards you.

As he came to a stop, right in front of you, your eyes couldn’t help but linger on his crotch; an impressive tent had formed by now in his trousers, and you licked your lips as you thought about what you would find on the other side of that zipper. From this angle, with you sitting on your heels, you were right at eye-level with it, but you finally managed to tear your focus away when you felt Loki’s hand tangle in your hair.

He tilted your head back, forcing you to look up at him, and you felt your eyes widen when you saw how far blown his pupils were.

“I think you know what I want from you,” he murmured, his free hand coming up to fiddle with his belt. “Are you going to give it to me?”

You unconsciously felt yourself nod as understanding washed over you, and your hands soon came up to replace his on his belt. You hurriedly unbuckled it as Loki finally shed his shirt and tossed it to the floor. As you unzipped his trousers and pulled them down, your eyes once more widened in surprise when you saw that he was wearing no underwear beneath them.

“A little bit presumptuous, don’t you think?” you chuckled, glancing up at him as you pushed his pants down his thighs.

“Never,” he shook his head. “Just optimistic.”

When his cock finally sprung free, you wrapped your hand around its shaft, taking a moment to admire it. He was long, that was for sure, and thick enough to make your thighs clench in anticipation; you knew that he would feel amazing inside of you. You were surprised that he was entirely hairless below the belt; he must shave, you realized. And for some reason, you liked that.

Without preamble, you leaned forward, tracing a vein running along the underside of his cock with your tongue. A stilted sigh left Loki’s lips, and you grinned, letting your tongue dart out to lick at his slit, tasting a drop of salty precum that had gathered there. His head was flushed a deep pink, and even though you’d never found cocks to be particularly appealing to look at, you couldn’t help but find every part of Loki beautiful. Maybe it was your feelings for him, or maybe it was just his natural appearance, but for whatever reason, you enjoyed wrapping your lips around Loki’s cock just as much as he did.

You stayed there for a short second, letting your tongue play with his head, sucking on it as you watched his face. A pain was starting to form in your neck from having to tilt your head back far enough to see him, but it was worth it; the expression he was wearing was one of bliss, and you had the thought that you’d never seen anyone quite as beautiful as him before. His eyes were closed, and his lips were parted in a small ‘o’ as you started to slowly bob your head forward. You felt his hand clench in your hair, unconsciously pulling you closer, encouraging you to take him deeper in your throat. And you did; every time his cock slid into your mouth, you took another inch of him until you felt his head tap the back of your throat. The sensation, at first, made you gag, but you fought that feeling down, taking deep breaths in through your nose as he started to thrust his hips forward.

Your hands came up to his thighs to support yourself as he started to fuck your mouth, and you clenched your thighs together as you listened to the breathless, desperate moans that were pouring out of Loki’s lips. Your name was like a prayer on his tongue, and every time he whispered it in that broken, pleasured voice, you could feel your pussy squeeze around nothing.

Just as he was starting to get louder, though, and before his thrusts could start to become too frenzied, too fast, he pulled away, letting out a groan at the sight of you. You didn’t need a mirror to know that you looked absolutely wrecked right now; your lips were no doubt swollen, and your hair had to be messy from where he’d been holding onto it. You felt your cheeks heat up when you spied a trail of saliva that stretched from his hard cock to your bottom lip, and you brought your hand up to wipe your mouth.

Loki caught your wrist before you could, though, and held you in place as he looked at you. It was as if he were committing the sight to memory, and you felt yourself flush even harder at the realization.

“You are beautiful,” he declared. His thumb came up and brushed against your lower lip, swiping away the saliva there before he took a step back. “Lay down for me, will you?”

Your heartrate jumped, and you knew, instinctively, that this was it. Nodding, you turned and crawled up the length of your bed, feeling Loki’s eyes on your ass before you laid down on your back with your head propped up against the pillows. After stepping out of his pants, he soon followed you, a predatory look in his eyes as he made his way up your body.

With a rough shove, he forced your legs apart, pressing kisses to your thighs as he climbed up your body. His lips trailed over your clothed mound to your belly, but he paused at your breasts, cupping them over your bra and admiring them as he rolled and squeezed them in his hands.

“Your body was made for my touch, love,” he sighed, his fingers making their way underneath you to the back of your corset. “And as much as I adore this, I would like to see it bare beneath me.”

With that, he started undoing the garment’s clasps, and you leaned up to help him. As soon as he was able too, he pulled the fabric away and threw it behind him, where it laid right beside his discarded shirt. His hands immediately fell onto your breasts, and he darted down to lick over one of your nipples. You arched up, letting out a surprised gasp at the contact, and Loki smirked before wrapping his lips around it and starting to _suck_. Your back arched up as if you’d been electrified, and you felt his smirk as he ran his tongue along your sensitive bud.

“L-loki,” you stammered. “Please, I-I need you…”

There was now a constant throbbing in your cunt, desperate to be filled, and you couldn’t handle much more of his teasing. You’d never gotten this worked up from giving a blowjob before, but you were so wet that you could feel it starting to seep through your panties. And something in your tone must have told Loki how much you needed it, how ready you were for him, because he pulled away and looked up at you, your eyes locking as he reached down to your panties.

“You _need_ me, do you?” he asked, his voice nearly a purr as he started sliding your drenched panties down your legs. “What do you need me to do so badly…?”

He trailed off as his eyes fell down to your pussy, and he blinked in surprise at what he saw. You squirmed, feeling self-conscious as he ran a finger down your slit, gathering your wetness, and a breath hissed in past his lips.

“You’re so _wet_ ,” he breathed, and you nearly moaned as he slipped his finger into his mouth, tasting you. His eyebrows furrowed, and he let out a groan that was borderline pornographic. “And so _sweet_ -“

“Loki, _please_ ,” you begged, “please, I need you inside of me-“

“Shh, don’t worry, love,” he hushed, guiding you to wrap your legs around his waist. “I’ll give you what you need.”

He let his body cover yours once again, his chest pressed against yours as he pulled you into a kiss. He supported his weight on his elbow, cradling your head in the crook of his arm as he reached his other hand down between you. You broke the kiss when you felt him guide the head of his cock against your entrance, but his lips were still hovering just a hair’s width from yours as he started to push inside.

Your lips parted at the initial stretch, forming into a silent moan as he slowly pushed inside of you. Your nails dug into his shoulders as your pussy started to adjust to him, taking every last inch of his cock until you felt his head bump against your cervix. You let out a soft moan at the sensation of it, letting your head fall back against your pillows as you tried to grow used to the feeling of him inside of you.

Loki, meanwhile, had his eyes closed as he tried to get used to the feeling of _you_ wrapped around _him_ , of your tight pussy pulsing and clenching around him as he bottomed out inside of you. He’d never felt anything like this before; sure, when it came to sex, he had plenty of experience. But he’d never felt a _connection_ like this; when his eyes opened to find yours staring at his face, waiting for him to move, he felt as if an electric spark ran down the length of his spine.

With a soft, barely perceptible grunt, he started to move, pulling his hips back before rolling them forward again. Your eyes rolled back as he found his rhythm, white-hot pleasure starting to break through your initial pain. Your legs tightened, pulling him closer against you, and once the pain faded completely, once you’d relaxed around the feeling of his length stretching you open, you opened your eyes.

Green irises were waiting there for you when you did, and a moan escaped you as your gazes locked. His eyebrows were drawn together, and broken, quiet moans fell from his parted lips as his thrusts became faster. Your hands were now on his biceps, squeezing them to ground yourself.

“That’s right,” he moaned, snapping his hips harder. “Take it; take all of me-“

And just then, the head of his cock brushed against something inside of you that made your toes curl. You cried out, clinging to him, your nails scratching paths down his back as he once again rocked his hips, hitting your g-spot again.

“There?” he asked breathlessly, and you nodded hurriedly, looking up at him.

“Y-yes, Loki, right ther- Oh, fuck-!”

It wasn’t long before he was pounding into you, both of you getting closer and closer to climax. Your body felt as if it were tight as a bowstring as you moved against your lover, your muscles tense as you rolled your hips against his, steadily craving more and more of him. As your pleasure built, as he moved inside of you, you started to feel what you’d seen in him earlier – _hunger_. _Deeper, faster, harder_ – your brain was a continuous mantra of thoughts like these, until you were consumed, possessed, by your need to cum, your need for _him_.

Loki sucked in a gasp of surprise when he felt you push up against him; his eyes flew open in time to watch you shift your weight, using one of the legs you had wrapped around his waist to flip the two of you over, and before he could fully realize it was happening, he found himself beneath your body, still inside of you as you rolled your hips against him.

“Fuck,” you moaned, letting your head fall back. “Fuck, just like that-“

He watched, stunned, as you started bouncing on his cock, your hands on his chest pressing him down and pinning him against the mattress. Your hips were moving frantically, writhing and rolling against his as you chased your release. Your eyes were closed, so you couldn’t see the look of awe, of pure adoration, on his face, and for that he was grateful. Because, yes, he had plenty of experience with lovers of all cultures, backgrounds, and genders. He’d delved into every extreme of humanity – murder, power, lust – every single one, except for _submission_.

And, yet, here he was, laying beneath you as you used him and his body for your pleasure. And despite the fact that he’d never submitted to any of his former lovers before, despite the careful control he felt the need to keep over himself, his life, and the lives of so many poor, unfortunate victims, he _liked_ it.

His eyes remained on you as he started thrusting up, if for no other reason than to aid you as you chased your orgasm. He was rewarded when you immediately tilted your head back and let out a moan, hips faltering in their rhythm as he pounded up into you. One of his hands cautiously snaked between your bodies, resting his palm on your upper thigh and letting his thumb brush past your folds.

You gasped, eyes snapping open as he started circling your clit, and unthinkingly you reached out, your hand falling to his neck and wrapping around it as you felt the knot inside of you tighten.

“Oh, my God, Loki-!”

You looked down, taking in your hand as it wrapped around his throat, staring at the wrecked, owned glint in his eyes. And part of you, somehow, realized how important this was for him, how rarely he let himself trust someone else to hold dominance over him like this. And the fact that you were able to do this to him, the fact that _you_ had this man under your control, completely at your mercy, was what finally made you cum.

You felt it first in the very tips of your fingers and toes – the aching, throbbing feeling of release. It spread through you slower than usual, gripping you tight in pleasured bliss before, abruptly, something snapped in your core. With a wail, you tightened your hand around his throat and came, clenching around his cock as your pleasure washed over you in one final wave. Your hips fell to a halt just as Loki tilted his head back and groaned your name, his seed spilling inside of you as he found his own release. You flexed your fingers, slowly releasing their grip on him as you both settled into your afterglow. Your pussy fluttered around his softening cock, and the vice-like hold he had on your hips started to relax.

Your elbows wobbled just a second before your strength gave out, and you found yourself laying pressed flush against Loki, his chest against yours, rising and falling to the rhythm of his deep breaths. His hands shifted, gliding down to your thighs, and gently you felt him push against you. With a grunt, he guided you off of his cock, and you both winced as it slipped out of your pussy.

His arms wrapped around you, then, lazily brushing up and down your back, and you felt a faint twinge of embarrassment as you felt cum start to leak out of you, spilling down your thighs and onto the sheets. You expected to see disgust on Loki’s face when he felt some of it drip onto his leg, but he only gave you a quick peck to the lips before maneuvering you to lay down beside of him.

You closed your eyes and felt his weight leave the bed as he stood up, and you listened to the padding of his feet as he made his way to your bathroom, coming out a few seconds later with a damp washcloth. You jolted when you felt its cold dampness against your leg, but you relaxed as you watched Loki clean you off, taking care as he guided the rag over your sensitive pussy. Once you were cleaned up, he dabbed at the sheets, managing to clean them a bit as well before tossing the cloth into your clothes hamper and climbing back into bed with you.

Once again, he gathered you into his arms, and you felt a smile tug at your lips as you rested your head over his heartbeat. It matched your own as you laid there, soaking in each other’s essence and replaying what had just happened in your minds. You felt a bit sheepish as you thought of how surprised Loki had looked when you flipped him over, and you glanced upwards to find him already staring at you, deep in thought.

“Sorry I, um…” You bit your lip, trying to find the right words. “Sorry I went all alpha-male on you there. I don’t know what came over me…”

Loki chuckled, pushing some hair out of your eyes.

“Did you hear me complaining?” he asked, arching an eyebrow. You smile, relieved, and let your head fall back down to his chest.

“Mm. Well. I promise I’m not…usually like that,” you explained. “Typically, I’m more of a sub.”

“And, typically, I’m the dominant one,” Loki mused. “But for whatever reason, with you…”

He trailed off, but you understood what he meant; you’d said it before.

“This is special,” you stated once again. You reached down, grabbing one of his hands and pressing a kiss to the back of it. “You’re special, Loki.”

Loki felt his heart squeeze, and he let out a soft sigh as he felt his chest swell with… Love. With love.

“I love you,” he breathed, under his breath. He actually, truly, loved you; that _had_ to be what this was, right? Because he’d felt a variety of things similar to love before – lust for his former lovers, affection for Thor. But this was so much deeper, so much brighter – it was like a fire burning within him. Not one that consumed, or burned, or destroyed. It was _warm_ , and glowing.

He hadn’t realized he’d spoken aloud until he felt you stiffen in his arms, and when he looked down, he saw pure surprise etched across your features. His heart sank; he hadn’t meant to confess his feelings to you. Especially not after having sex for the first time on your third date.

But relief washed over him when he saw a smile form over your lips, and you leaned up to kiss him softly, sweetly. You pulled back and laughed, a sound that was so honest and pure that it made his own mouth turn up into a grin.

“I love you, too, Loki,” you whispered, pressing your forehead to his. “God, it’s not the smart thing to do, and I know everyone will say it’s too soon for me to know it, but… Fuck, I _love_ you.”

In that moment, as he stared up at you with a smile to match your own, he knew that now that he had your love, he’d never be able to live without it. He was addicted to it, to the sound of those three words on your lips, to the way you looked at him, the way you touched him – he was addicted to your love in the same way he was addicted to killing.

And as the two of you kissed, and, later, when you slid onto his cock again for the second time that night, he found that he couldn’t tell which love would be the more all-encompassing. He honestly didn’t know which would be the one to take him down, his love for murder or his love for you. But he was also just as certain that he absolutely didn’t care.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I'm always hella nervous about writing sex scenes, so let me know if there's any way I can improve how I write them! Homegirl's still got her v-card, so I'm going in blind with these smutty chapters lol...   
> Thanks so much for reading!


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! Soooo as a quick warning, this chapter does contain some GORE, so read at your own risk! If you wanna skip the gorey bits, just scroll down until it switches to Natasha's perspective. 
> 
> As always, thanks so much for reading, and enjoy!!!!

Your eyes flew open with a gasp, and your fingers twisted and dug into the sheets; a ragged, breathless moan tore itself out of your throat, and for a moment, you couldn’t tell whether or not you were still asleep. You’d just been dreaming a second ago, though you couldn’t remember what about, but now, there was something hot and wet _lapping_ at your already-drenched pussy.

Blearily, you looked down, making out the form of something moving beneath the blankets. Or, rather, someone. The events of the last night came back to you just as another moan escaped from your parted lips, and you threw back the covers to see a familiar head of black hair nestled between your spread thighs.

“L-loki,” you sputtered, voice still rough from sleeping. “Wh-what are you- oh, _fuck_ -!”

His chuckle was muffled as he wrapped his lips around your clit and started _sucking_ , and your back arched up as your hands flew to his hair. You fought to keep your eyes open, wanting to savor the sight of his aquamarine eyes staring up at you while he gently grazed his teeth over your sensitive bud. The sensation sent shockwaves up and down your spine, and your hands moved to his hair as your hips started rolling upwards of their own accord.

You only lasted for an embarrassingly-short amount of time; you had no way of knowing how long Loki had been playing with your cunt while you slept, but within just a few minutes of waking up, you felt your toes curl as your orgasm washed over you. Your eyes never left his, taking in the proud, almost smug, gleam in them as he greedily tasted your cum.

His tongue kept lazily exploring your pussy, grazing over your clit as you jolted from the oversensitivity. Biting your lip, you tugged on his dark tresses, watching as he reluctantly pulled his head up to fully face you.

“Good morning,” he smirked, his lips swollen and slick with your juices.

“I… Good morning,” you stammered. “That was…one hell of a way to wake up.”

Both of you chuckled as he crawled up your body, wrapping an arm around your waist before pulling you into a kiss. You could taste yourself on his tongue, and you couldn’t help the tiny groan that came out of your mouth at the lewdness it.

Loki pulled away, licking his lips as he looked down at you. For a moment, the two of you were silent, taking in the other person as sunlight drifted in from behind your closed blinds. His hair fell in thick, frizzy waves, no doubt rumpled from how you’d been manhandling it both last night and this morning, and his face seemed to be almost…softer than usual. Despite how he’d woken you up, you could see a faint gleam of sleepiness still lingering in his expression, and it made him look younger; with a smile, you traced one of his cheekbones with a finger, trailing it down the line of his jaw and sweeping it across his lower lip.

“You’re beautiful, Loki,” you whispered. You hadn’t meant to speak those words out loud, but there was no denying the truth in them.

A wide, close-lipped smile came to his face, and he pressed one more peck to your cheek before pulling away to sit beside you on the bed.

“I think,” he mused, “that we both need a big breakfast with even _bigger_ cups of coffee after last night.” His voice was just a touch gravelly, but there was no denying the affection in it as he looked down at you, lazily playing with a strand of your hair.

“Don’t tell me I wore you out,” you chuckled, reluctantly pulling yourself to sit up. Loki gave you a tired, almost sheepish smile, before he pulled himself to his feet.

“I must be slowing down in my old age,” he joked, eyes scanning the floor to see where his underwear had ended up.

Propped up on your elbows, you watched the lean muscles of his body contract and bend as he stooped to retrieve them, and you were once more reminded of a statue carved from the purest white marble. The corded muscles of his thighs flexed with every movement as he stalked over to your en suite bathroom, and it was only when he’d closed the door behind him that you decided it was time to get up.

“I was thinking,” you called out, making your way to your closet, “that we could get some breakfast together at a café down the street. My treat.”

You pulled on a nude bra with matching panties, not hearing the bathroom door as it swung open. It was only when you felt cold hands descend upon your waist that you jolted and turned to face Loki again, not missing the way his eyes skimmed over your breasts.

“I’d say that you treated me to more than enough last night,” he purred. “Between your amazing cooking, your beautiful writing, and your absolutely _sinful_ body, well…” His hands trailed up your sides, tickling over your ribs before slipping under the cups of your bra.

“A man can get spoiled quite easily.”

Needless to say, it was a while before either of you got properly dressed.

______________

Loki sipped his black coffee as you consumed the café’s specialty drink of the day, his hand resting over yours as you both finished off your breakfasts. The two of you had been sitting in companionable silence for a while, giving you an opportunity to think of what you would right next in your newest work in progress.

“I can practically see the gears turning in your head, love,” he chuckled after a while, shaking you from your thoughts. “Care to share?”

You smiled, setting down your fork.

“Just about the book,” you told him. “I think I’m going to write another killing scene soon.”

Your boyfriend’s eyes leapt up, his interest obviously piqued.

“Oh? How will our coroner do it this time?”

You winced unconsciously, your thoughts turning red for the briefest of moments as you considered whether or not to share your twisted ideas with him.

“I’m…not sure if it’s the right thing to discuss over breakfast,” you admitted weakly. “Wouldn’t want your breakfast to, uh, disagree with you.”

“Love? Need I remind you of what I do for a living?” was his deadpanned response. “I play with corpses for a paycheck; I promise that not only will it not bother me to hear, but that I _want_ to.”

As strange of a response as it was, you couldn’t help but feel warmth bloom in your chest; you’d nearly forgotten that Loki wasn’t like other people. You didn’t have to filter your morbid, macabre thoughts around him. If anything, his dry and sardonic sense of humor encouraged the darker turn your conversations often ended up taking.

“Well… I’m considering having her…” You trailed off, searching for the right word. “ _Disembowel_ someone, I suppose. Her victim is one of the rare few she takes to satisfy a personal agenda; typically, she’ll just pick a random innocent, but this time it’s semi-personal. So I was considering a more _passionate_ murder for them.”

Loki’s eyes were shining with a mischievous sort of joy, and you found yourself thinking, not for the first time, that if he wasn’t so directly involved with death on a daily basis, his love of such things would be concerning, to say the least. But you supposed that the same could be said of you, and so you trudged on with your brainstorming.

“I was thinking about having her cut them open and use their intestines to strangle them, but I’m not even sure if that would even _work_ in real life,” you mused, tracing the edge of your coffee cup with a finger. “I imagine that a person would die from being cut open before they could die from asphyxiation.”

He nodded his head solemnly, turning over your words. You were relieved to find no disgust within his features – only mild interest as he pondered.

“Off the top of my head, I can think of a few issues that one would have if they were to attempt such a thing,” he considered. “For one, there’s the bleeding to contend with. And I would think someone could go into shock and lose consciousness if they’re awake and conscious during the ordeal.

“Which, of course, they would have to be. Otherwise, what fun would it be?”

A surprised bark of laughter escaped your lips, and your hand flew up to cover your mouth as Loki’s spread into a wide, toothy grin.

“You’re _bad_ ,” you chided, shooting him a look of mock-reproach.

“Oh, I’m well aware. But so are you, darling. It would appear we’re two sides of the same unconventional coin.”

Your smile softened, and you gave his hand a squeeze before tipping your head back and draining the rest of your coffee, not catching the spark in his eyes as watched your throat.

“But I _will_ think about your idea while I’m at work; maybe I’ll come up with a way for our favorite coroner to pull off such an interesting kill.”

“Thank you, love. But I have to say, Olivia is still only my _second_ favorite coroner.”

__________________

Loki hummed to himself, listening to the way the sound echoed throughout the cavernous theater. Typically, he preferred to bring his victims back to his home so as to ensure more privacy, but he was feeling festive this evening; why not celebrate the occasion with a bit of a change in scenery?

And what scenery it was. He’d first discovered the abandoned theater about a year after moving to New York. It was located on the outskirts of Manhattan, tucked away into a quiet, crumbling corner of the city that few ventured into. Not even the homeless dared take up residence in the old building; Loki had already nearly fallen through the worn, creaking hardwood of the stage once, and the ceiling was dotted with holes that hinted at the establishment’s imminent collapse. It was only a matter of time before man or nature razed the theater to concrete and crushed brick, but he doubted such a thing would happen tonight.

He’d always been remarkably lucky, all things considered.

The plastic of his hazmat suit crumbled and squeaked with his every movement, and it was becoming quite muggy and humid with his own sweat, but he’d been doing this for too long to risk getting caught now. He’d been meticulous, making sure that no trace of himself would be left behind – just his work.

His head perked up when he heard movement from behind him, and he glanced sideways at the evening’s entertainment. He hadn’t cared to learn his name; all he knew was that the man currently encased in duct tape and rope had cut him off in traffic, and that had been enough justification for Loki to follow him home. The poor sap hadn’t made it to his front door, though; no, he had a greater purpose to serve. 

He turned fully to watch as the man’s eyes blinked open, sluggishly roving about the room as he recovered from the blow Loki had landed to the back of his head. Once their eyes met, though, he watched as realization washed over his countenance, and in the wake of realization, terror. A deep, guttural groan was muffled by duct tape, and the sound bounced along the high-vaulted ceiling and peeling walls.

“Oh, my apologies,” Loki smirked. “Here, let me…”

He crossed to the man and knelt down, ripping the tape off in one quick, harsh movement.

“Please, I have a family-“ the man started to plead, but the coroner only rolled his eyes before standing up once again.

“I was hoping for something more original,” he sighed disappointedly. “If I had a dollar for every time I heard those words, I would probably be able to afford a second home in Malibu.”

He chuckled at his own joke, tuning out the man’s pitiful wailing as he dragged his toolkit closer. Squatting down, he lined up the three syringes he’d brought with him, just in case, before drawing out his beloved pocketknife. Its ebony handle shone in the dim lighting, reflecting a distorted image of the smile he was currently wearing.

“I-I-I can pay you, too,” he heard from behind him. “Anything you want! I work on Wall Street; I can-“

“Let me ask you something,” he interrupted once again. After lovingly setting the knife down next to the syringes, he brought himself up to his feet.

The man was now visibly trembling, trying to squirm his way out of the rope binding his arms and legs. Loki inhaled deeply through his nose; he could swear that he smelled the fear radiating off of his victim, could taste it on his tongue - metallic and salty and _intoxicating_.

“What is your name?” he inquired, tilting his head.

“Larry. L-Larry Farmer.”

“Larry Farmer?” He tilted his head back, shoulders shaking with laughter. “That… I’m sorry; I’m being terribly rude, laughing at your name like this. It’s just that you _look_ like a Larry Farmer, if I’ve ever seen one.”

Larry seemed to be too frightened to be offended, though he couldn’t care less about what this soon-to-be-corpse thought of his manners. He reserved them only for those who _deserved_ courtesy, after all.

“Well, Larry,” he continued on. “I’m sure you have at least some semblance of an idea as to why I’ve brought you here.”

“Please, don’t- don’t kill me, I-I’ll do anything-“

“If it’s any consolation, your death is, in a way, for posterity’s sake. You’re going to be _famous_ , Larry. Probably in both the news _and_ my lover’s latest masterpiece.”

He crossed the floor to the hook he’d set up earlier that day, hoping that it would work for its intended purpose. The hook was large and rusted, and connected to it was a long length of rope that he’d slung over one of the exposed beams above the stage. He’d tested his own weight on it, satisfied that it was still sturdy despite the state of the rest of the theater, but now he was starting to have his doubts. Mr. Farmer wasn’t as muscular as him, but he was quite rotund. And while Loki typically didn’t judge such a thing, he _was_ worried that the man would either snap the rope or send the roof tumbling down onto them.

With one final tug to make sure the hook was secured, he started marching back towards the sobbing man sprawled out on the floor, delighting in the way his eyes widened and his feet skittered in their bonds, trying to push himself away from the killer as he approached. With a grunt, he grabbed Larry’s suit jacket and dragged him back to the contraption, his breath ragged by the time he managed to attach the hook to the rope twined around the quivering fool’s hands.

“Well, at least I can skip cardio tomorrow,” he grunted to himself through clenched teeth. His shoes clicked as he made his way to the other end of the hook’s rope, but their sound was almost drowned out by Larry’s screams.

“HELP ME,” he was shouting, his body writhing on the ground in a way that reminded Loki of worms once the rain washed them onto a sidewalk. “PLEASE, SOMEONE, HE’S GONNA KILL ME-“

“He sure is.”

Gripping the rope in both hands, Loki planted his feet and _pulled_ , watching Mr. Farmer’s body as first his arms were raised up, followed by his torso, until, after a lot of panting and heaving on Loki’s part, he was suspended in the air. His feet were kicking as much as they could with tape twined around his ankles, trying to make contact with the ground, but he remained hovering just above it by a few inches.

After tying off the rope to a nearby post, Loki sauntered over to the hanging man, hands folded behind his back as he caught his breath from the excursion.

“There, now. Much better.”

His eyes followed the length of rope upwards, pleased that it looked to be holding fast. Finally, everything was ready for his little experiment. Stooping down, he retrieved his knife, admiring it for a moment before turning back to Larry.

“No, no, no, please, _please_ -“

“Hushhhh, no one can hear you,” he purred, coming to stand before the man who was _still_ persisting in begging for his life.

He rested one of his hands on Larry’s shoulder, gripping tight as he plunged the knife into his gut. The blade wasn’t terribly long – maybe four or five inches – but it cut deep enough that, when Loki flicked his wrist to make a long, clean slash along the lower abdomen, the intestines fell out with a wet, satisfying squish. Or, rather, _part_ of them did.

“O-oh my god…”

Larry’s voice was a low moan of pain, and Loki took a second to bask in it as blood dripped steadily to the floor. His screams had morphed into anguished grunts and groans, which were _infinitely_ more pleasing to Loki’s ear. A quick upwards glance showed that his face had gone unnaturally pale, and his eyes were half-lidded as he threatened to pass out.

“Oh, no, not yet-“

Loki stooped down, grabbing one of the syringes and stabbing it into the man’s chest, injecting it with his thumb pushing down on the plunger. Larry’s body jolted, a gasp parting his pale lips as his eyes once more snapped open.

“There, we go,” the killer purred, tucking the syringe into one of Mr. Farmer’s pockets. “A little bit of adrenaline goes a long way, hm? Now.”

He reached down, holding a length of slippery small intestines between his hands.

“Stay with me for just a little longer more, Larry. Then you can go to sleep; I promise.”

With gentle tugs and steady movements, Loki brought the length of the gut up and around Larry’s neck, drinking in the horror on his expression. A series of disbelieving, shocked gurgles escaped the man’s throat as Loki wrapped each hand firmly in the intestines.

“Wh-y,” he wheezed, surprising Loki with his ability to still speak despite the amount of his insides which were, currently, on his outside. “A-a-re y-ou do- doing thi-s-s-s…”

He chuckled in response, his eyebrows jumping up as he met Mr. Farmer’s eyes.

“Why are all the best crimes committed?” he countered as he started to pull on the length of intestine. The man’s eyes bugged out as he began to choke, and a crease formed between Loki’s eyebrows as he focused on not losing his grip on the slippery material.

He brought his face close to the man now struggling for breath, admiring the way his skin had started to turn from pale to purple. His voice was barely above a whisper as he answered his own question, keeping his fingers tight around the gut gripped in them.

“For love.”

Only seconds later, Larry Farmer’s eyes rolled to the back of his head, and all too soon, he went limp.

Later on, once Loki was showered and resting in his bed, he called you, holding the phone to his ear and waiting impatiently for you to pick up.

“…Hello?”

A smile came over his face upon hearing your voice, and he closed his eyes, replaying the look in Larry’s eyes just before he’d succumbed to death.

“Hello, love. I’ve been thinking about what you said over breakfast yesterday; I think I have a few ideas about how Olivia would be able to pull it off…”

_____________________

There wasn’t enough caffeine in the world for days like this, but the large tumbler of iced coffee in Natasha’s hand would have to do. A matching one was in Steve’s as the two detectives marched into the theater, and she couldn’t help but sigh at the small herd of reporters that had already started to form outside the condemned building.

“I don’t know whether to be impressed or annoyed that they always manage to get here before we do,” her partner mused, casting a disapproving glance towards the news vans and flashing cameras.

Detective Romanoff’s eyes flashed as she followed his gaze, and her full lips twisted into a grimace before taking a sip of her drink.

“I’m gonna go with annoyed,” she sighed. “Vultures, the lot of them.”

“You won’t hear me disagree.”

He lifted the line of caution tape barricading the door for her, and she muttered a thank you before ducking under it and walking into the aged, dingey lobby within. The crushed velvet lining the walls had to be filled with decades’ worth of pollen and dust, and she was already fighting down the urge to sneeze. Officers were dotted here and there, trying to lift a print off of any possible surface, but she’d already been informed that they had yet to find anything useful.

“Detective Romanoff, Detective Rogers.”

The two turned to see Officer Coulson walking up to them, his hands hooked into his belt as he approached. Natasha’s lips twitched upwards; Phil was a gifted officer, a kind man, and a good friend, and seeing him managed to slightly lessen the painful headache starting to form behind her eyes.

“Coulson,” she greeted. “Heard you have quite a doozy waiting for us.”

“That’s one way of putting it. Just wanted to give you a heads up before you go in there. Let’s just say that we’ve already had an officer lose his breakfast at the sight of it.”

One of her manicured eyebrows arched up, and she and Steve shared a look before turning towards the doors that led to the auditorium.

“Is it _that_ bad?” Steve asked, a node of trepidation in his voice.

“It ain’t good.”

With that, Coulson turned and walked out the building, bringing his phone out of his pocket to no doubt give Sergeant Fury a call. Natasha didn’t know what she was dreading more – walking into the auditorium, or having her superior breathing down her neck until they caught whoever had left behind the body.

Without further preamble, she squared her shoulders and pushed past the doors, eyes immediately widening as she saw what was waiting for them. A portly, middle-aged man was dangling from the ceiling by his own bound hands, and as she walked closer, she saw that his own intestines were looped around his neck like some kind of morbid scarf. Steve cursed under his breath, and Natasha nodded her head in silent agreement with the sentiment.

Fuck, indeed.

Doctor Banner, a forensic specialist who’d been working with the police since before Natasha had come to America, turned towards them as they climbed the steps to the stage. His salt and pepper curls were messy and wild, and stubble was thick on his cheeks, signifying that he’d probably left home that morning in a hurry.

“Oh, hey,” he greeted them, though his eyes were on Natasha alone. “You made it; we were about to get the party started without you.”

“I don’t see how that’s a party,” she fired back, nodding towards the corpse.

Banner nodded, glancing back at the body as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

“Yeah, I see your point…”

Steve smiled, glancing between the two before clearing his throat.

“What can you tell us about all of this, Dr. Banner?” he asked, drawing the scientist’s attention back to the matter at hand.

“Oh, right. Yeah, so this is Larry Farmer, age 49. Time of death looks to be about 12 hours ago; we’re lucky that we found him at all. If the local kids hadn’t decided to try and practice their graffiti here, who knows when he would’ve been found?”

He pulled a pen out of his breast pocket, using it to point along the length of intestine twined around Mr. Farmer’s neck.

“He lost a lot of blood, but the burst capillaries in his eyes and face suggests that he died from strangulation, not blood loss. Now, we found an empty syringe in his pocket, and we’ll have to do a few tests on it to see-“

“Wait a minute,” Steve interrupted, holding up a hand. “You’re telling me that this guy was strangled with his own-“

“Intestines, yeah,” the doctor finished for him with a wince. “Pretty fucked up, isn’t it?”

“To put it mildly,” Natasha stated, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. “Now what was this about a syringe?”

“Right; we don’t know for sure what it is, but I’m willing to bet it was either something to clot the blood or something to keep him awake. We’ll know in a few hours. The medical examiner will be able to test his blood, too, to see if there’s any other kind of chemical in it that shouldn’t be there.”

“Sounds good,” Natasha nodded. “Do we know which hospital he’s gonna be brought to?”

Hours later, she felt her heart sinking as Steve pulled up to Bellevue Hospital, its familiar shape looming over her as she thought about the man who was, most likely, puttering away in the morgue. Something in her chest ached at the idea, and her displeasure must have shown on her face, because Steve turned to her with a sympathetic glance one the care was put into park.

“He might not even be working today,” he offered, fake optimism dripping from his voice. “Besides, he’s not the only medical examiner here. Farmer might have been brought to Dr. Lyons, or Dr. Stewart, or-“

“The universe would never be so kind,” Natasha snarked before stepping out of the police car, pulling her leather jacket on over her sweater as the cold nipped at her skin.

Her breath turned to fog as she and Steve walked in side by side, shoulders brushing every now and then as she unconsciously leaned towards her friend for support. He didn’t know the whole story – no one but her and Dr. Odinson did – but he knew that there was history between the two of them. Everyone who knew of her prickly feelings for Loki assumed that they’d dated at one point in time, and she let them think that, not wanting to look on the past long enough to recall the twisted web of memories waiting there for her.

The morgue was always kept about ten degrees cooler than the rest of the hospital, and an icy finger trailed down her spine as she made her way to the familiar observation room. And, belatedly, the familiar man working inside.

Dr. Odinson was hunched over the body, sewing Larry Farmer shut with a precise, skillful hand; a small, absentminded smile had settled over his lips, and Natasha felt herself shudder at the sight. She would try to rationalize that he must be thinking about something pleasant, but she’d seen that same smile on his face countless of times before, all while he worked on the corpses laid out on his steel observation table.

Loki _liked_ what he did, for reasons that she frankly didn’t care to learn.

“Dr. Odinson,” Steve called out, prompting the doctor’s head to turn promptly towards them.

“Ah. Hello, detectives,” he greeted, straightening up. He delicately placed the suture onto Mr. Farmer’s bare chest before stepping away and shucking off his examination gloves. “I wasn’t expecting you so soon.”

“We wanted to pick up the toxicology report on our way back to the station,” Steve explained. “Did you find anything that could be useful?”

“I found a _few_ things that might be useful to you,” he informed them.

His long legs carried him to his desk in powerful, confident strides, and he retrieved a manilla envelope from the stack of neat papers situation on its surface.

“After running some tests, I-“

He was interrupted by the loud, tinny sound of a phone going off, and Steve’s hand flew into his pocket, pulling his device out and glancing at the caller ID.

“It’s Bucky,” he said, glancing up at Natasha. “Is it ok if I…?”

He trailed off, and a spike of anxiety pierced through her at the thought of being left alone with Loki. But she masked her unease with a tight, forced smile before nodding her head.

“Yeah! Yeah, go ahead; I’ll fill you in on whatever you miss.”

Steve nodded his thanks and walked out, accepting the call and bringing the phone up to his ear.

“Hey, babe, what’s up?”

His voice faded as he stepped out of the room, and no other words were discernable as he spoke to his husband in the hallway.

“…As I was saying,” Loki continued on, turning his full attention to Natasha. “After running some tests, I found an unusually large amount of adrenaline in his blood; Dr. Banner mentioned something about finding a syringe in his pocket?”

Natasha nodded, and Loki handed her the envelope, his fingers long and pale against its surface.

“Well, the exact numbers are in the report, but it was enough adrenaline to keep him conscious throughout the process,” he pushed on, a surprising lack of teasing in his voice. “He was, indeed, killed by asphyxiation, though I suspect that, if he hadn’t have been strangled, he would have bled out within a matter of minutes.

“There was a blow to the back of his head, too, that likely wouldn’t have caused any permanent damage, but it’s worth noting.”

“Well, that would confirm that he was knocked out and then taken to the theater,” she mused, biting her lower lip in thought.

“Either that, or he went to the theater with someone who then decided to knock him out. He was, however, fully awake at the time of strangulation.”

Natasha nodded, tucking the envelope under her arm.

“…Thank you, Dr. Odinson,” she finally stated. “I’ll give you a call if I have any questions about your report.”

Aside from the cynical jump in his eyebrows upon hearing her refer to him by this professional title, Loki offered none of his usual sly remarks or glances before turning on his heel and making his way back to the body.

“Any time, Officer Romanoff.”

She grit her teeth in annoyance, glaring at him as he pulled on another set of gloves.

“It’s _detective_ , Loki. And you know it.”

His movements slowed to a stop, and once more his eyes met hers. She forced herself not to look away, staring back at him coolly until he resumed pulling on the gloves.

“My mistake,” he muttered. “Force of habit. _Detective_ Romanoff.”

The redhead nodded, her curls bouncing in her peripheral vision, and hesitated for a second longer before turning back to the doors. Something in her made her stop, though, and she glanced back at the doctor as he picked up the suture once more, his hemostats clicking as he locked them in place.

“…Hey. You doing anything later?”

She hated the tremble in her voice, hated the sick part of her that wanted him to say yes. God knows she didn’t care for the man; his very presence set her teeth on edge.

But she was weak, and he had always been _very_ skilled at relieving the tension she managed to accumulate during the days like this one.

Loki glanced up at her from under his lashes, but his hands didn’t still in their movements as he answered.

“I’m planning on cooking dinner for my girlfriend, actually.”

Silence stretched out between them, and Natasha did nothing to hide the shock on her features. Something cold wrapped around her lungs and squeezed, and she fought down a tide of embarrassment as she thought back to the woman she’d seen Loki talking to several days before.

“…Oh. I’m sorry, I… I didn’t know-“

“It’s quite alright,” he assured her in a, surprisingly, kind tone. “I always _did_ say that conventional relationships weren’t my forte.”

She nodded, recalling the first time he’d said those very same words to her.

“She must be special, then,” Natasha offered, her hands clenching and unclenching at her sides. “To have changed your mind like that.”

A fond smile came to his lips, very similar to the one he wore when focused on his work, and though she didn’t feel even a shred of jealousy, it was still unnerving to see.

“She’s very special, Detective. Very special indeed.”

On the other side of the doors behind her, Natasha heard Steve say his goodbyes to Bucky, and she turned to walk out before he could join her in the operatory.

Once Loki was left alone in the room, he turned back to Larry Farmer, a bemused smile on his face.

“…It’s complicated,” he said to the corpse, staring down into his cloudy, sightless eyes.

He didn’t expect an answer as he finished sewing up the wound he himself had inflicted, but the smile on his lips didn’t falter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are always appreciated! :) Thanks so so much for reading!


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW. I mean, wow. It has been MONTHS since I posted to this story, and I can't apologize enough! I appreciate anyone who's still reading this mess; you guys are the best readers on planet Earth, and I can't begin to tell you how much you mean to me. 
> 
> Without further ado, though, here's chapter five! Just as a warning, it contains smuttiness, but otherwise, there's no gore or violence in this chapter. Yay! ...I hate that I have to preface new chapters of this story with that warning, but oh, well! Here we are. It's a twisted, dark road, but we're walking it together, friends!
> 
> As always, I always appreciate comments, so let me know what you think! We're introducing a new character in this that I'm so excited to write for. I'm excited to see what y'all think!

_Too good to be true._

That was the thought that kept plaguing you, even four months later. _He’s too good to be true. This relationship is too good to be true. What happens when I figure out that this is too good to possibly be true?_

And yet, day after day, Loki continued to prove you wrong. It wasn’t all just the big romantic overtures that you found out he loved to make. (Like the time he had a dozen red roses delivered to your door on your one-months anniversary. Or the brand new matching wireless keyboard and mouse he got to make writing easier for you. Or the time he took you to a quaint, tucked away speak-easy to treat you to a night of drinks and slow dancing.)

It was in the little things, too. How he would come over on days where you felt less-than-good to hold you and watch your favorite movies. Or how he would send you texts throughout the day to tell you about an interesting case at work, or to ask you what you wanted for dinner on date night, or just to tell you that he was thinking about you.

In fact, some would even say that he was _too_ attentive, _too_ perfect, and were it anyone else, alarm bells would be going off in your head. But there was something about him that made you keep coming back for more, and even with months now behind you, you still couldn’t get enough.

And maybe that was why you were so nervous right now. Pacing back and forth across the length of your bedroom, you stared down at your stocking-clad feet as you tried frantically to tamp down the butterflies batting around your rib cage. You knew, consciously, that even if tonight were a disaster, Loki would still care about you. He wouldn’t just up and leave, even if Thor ended up despising you.

But you still really hoped he wouldn’t.

A gasp parted your lips when the tell-tale sound of your doorbell echoed throughout your home, and after one more deep breath, you pulled your heels on and made your way down the stairs. With one last glance in the mirror and a quick, silent prayer to whoever might be listening, you threw your purse over your shoulder and opened your front door.

His smile still caught you off guard sometimes. As you stepped out into the darkness of the evening, you felt heat flood your cheeks as Loki grinned up at you. He was dressed impeccably as always, sporting a dark green suit with a crisp white shirt, and if the way his eyes raked over you was anything to go by, he was more than pleased with how you looked, as well.

“And you must be the woman I’ve heard so much about!”

A loud, booming voice took you off guard, and you watched as annoyance flashed over your boyfriend’s face at the outburst. As he turned to shoot a glare over his shoulder, you caught a flash of the other man waiting at the base of your front steps, and though you already knew that Loki was adopted, you were still briefly taken aback by just how different the two brothers were.

Thor was just as large as Loki had described, and although the two stood at about the same height, his shoulders and build were so broad that he would have been quite intimidating, were it not for the large grin on his face. His long hair was pulled up into a loose bun, showing off a pair of blue eyes that seemed to radiate genuine happiness, and despite your still-present nerves, you couldn’t help but let a matching smile come over your features.

“Hi, Thor. Loki’s told me so much about you.”

“And I’m sure all of it is incredibly flattering, right?” He sent a conspiratorial glance back to Loki, who only raised an eyebrow.

“Whatever could I tell her about you that _wouldn’t_ be flattering, brother?”

“Nothing comes to mind, seeing whereas I’ve never done anything wrong or questionable.”

“Thor Odinson? Perish the thought.”

The man in question let out a bark of laughter before turning back to you and extending his arm for a handshake.

“Well, my brother has nothing but glowing remarks about _you_ ,” he remarked, all but crushing your hand in his grip. “And I couldn’t be more thrilled to finally meet the woman who’s stolen Loki’s heart.”

Once more, you felt heat rising in your face, and you let out a nervous chuckle as Thor dropped your hand. From your right, you felt an arm slither around your waist, and you leaned into Loki’s warmth.

“Thank you so much! It’s a pleasure to meet you, too.”

“You don’t need to lie for his sake, love,” Loki stage-whispered into your ear. Rolling your eyes, you gave him a nudge with your elbow, though Thor seemed to be used to his brother’s sass. Without a glance in his direction, Thor reached into his pocket and withdrew a set of keys, clicking a button on them until you heard a car beep close by.

“Shall we be off, then?” he asked. “We have about twenty minutes until our reservation.”

“That is if his driving doesn’t kill us along the way,” Loki snarked, guiding you towards the car with a hand on your lower back.

“I didn’t hear you offering to drive earlier, Loki,” Thor commented, sending his brother a look that elicited a scowl in response.

“Only because my car is in the shop. Remember?”

“Excuses, excuses.”

You giggled at the pained look your boyfriend sent you, pecking his cheek as Thor made his way around to the driver’s seat. Loki offered to sit in the back, but after a few moments of deliberation, you ended up sitting in the back with Loki on the passenger side next to Thor. Your seating arrangements ended up working out perfectly, though, because you had the perfect vantage point to watch the two brothers bicker over how to get to the restaurant. Loki was doing his best to navigate, but… Well. You quickly learned that it was of no use with Thor behind the wheel.

“I said take a _left_ at Sycamore, Thor.”

“I heard you. But there’s a shortcut between Sycamore and Highland Street.”

“No, there’s not. Have you even driven through this part of New York before?”

“You forget I used to live here, too, brother. I know exactly what I’m doing.”

“Oh, just like you did when we were driving through London, yes?”

“That was your fault. If you hadn’t had tried to-“

“WATCH FOR PEDESTRIANS, FOR CHRIST’S SAKE!”

Needless to say, the twenty minute drive was eventful to say the least, and you were only mildly traumatized by the way Thor was bobbing and weaving through the thick New York traffic. Even Loki looked a bit green from it, and you’d never seen your boyfriend shaken by anything. When both of you had your feet once again on solid ground, he wrapped an arm around you once again and whispered against your hair.

“I really do apologize for all of that, darling.”

“No, please don’t. It was funny,” you assured him, pecking his cheek as Thor rounded the vehicle towards you. “Usually you’re so…unperturbed. It was nice to see you a little ruffled.”

He sent you a bemused smile, but it vanished as Thor clapped him on the back hard enough to make him stumble forward a few steps.

“Well, nothing ruffles Loki’s feathers like me. It took an entire month of convincing for him to even agree to me visiting.”

“A decision I’m regretting more and more as the minutes tick by…”

Soon enough, the three of you were sat at a table in one of the nicest restaurants you’d ever been to. Surprisingly enough, Thor had recommended the place, and after your waiter came by to take your drink orders, you rested your hand on top of Loki’s and turned towards the blonde.

“Thank you for the restaurant suggestion, Thor. How’d you hear about this place?”

“My girlfriend actually told me about it. Usually when I’m in New York on business, I just go to local food trucks or pizza parlors. But Jane said that I should take you two somewhere nice. She apologizes for not being able to make the trip, by the way. She was just as curious about you as I was, but she had an important conference to give a lecture at.”

“That sounds amazing! And no worries; I’d love to meet her next time you’re in town. What do the two of you do for a living?”

“Well, Jane is an astronomer – one of the best in the entire world, actually,” he started, his eyes lighting up at the mention of his partner. “She’s lecturing on a new design she’s invented, some sort of spectrometer. Honestly, it all goes way over my head, but that’s why she’s the genius.”

“To be fair, most things go over your head, brother.”

Thor rolled his eyes at Loki’s quip, and when you turned towards your boyfriend, you saw that he had a small smile on his face to match the mischievous glint in his eyes. You knew better than to take him seriously; anyone would be able to see how close the two were, despite their back-and-forth.

“And what about you, Thor? Loki’s never told me what you do for a living.”

“I work for Stark Industries,” he replied, taking a sip of the large pint of beer he’d ordered. “It’s not much, but it keeps me busy.”

“Not much, indeed,” Loki interjected. “You’re only in charge of the _entire_ marketing department, after all.”

Your eyes widened at that; Stark Industries was one of the biggest, most well-known brand names in the world. From appliances to electronics to clean energy, it was right up there with Google and Disney as far as most were concerned, and to think that Thor was in such a high-ranking position, well… From the things Loki had told you about Thor, you hadn’t expected such a career for him.

“Wow. That’s…incredible. So you know Tony Stark?”

“Oh, me and Tony are great friends. But I don’t ‘run’ the marketing department by any means. Just the UK faction of it.”

“ _’Just’_?”

After that, the waiter stopped by to take your respective orders, after which Thor settled his attention on you once more.

“So, Loki has already told me about your writing. It’s funny to think of him dating the author responsible for those books he’s obsessed over for years.”

“I’m not obse-“

“Has he asked you to sign any of his copies yet?”

He had, jokingly, at one point. But you didn’t tell Thor that.

The rest of the evening passed by without incident, and your nerves quickly evaporated as the three of you laughed and talked through the rest of the meal. Loki liked to joke at Thor’s expense, but it was clear that he held his older brother in high regard, and Thor clearly loved Loki very much. More than a few times, you caught him watching you and Loki closely, a discerning, considering look in his eyes that belayed an intelligence you hadn’t expected. He might not be as book smart or as well-spoken as his younger sibling, but Thor obviously was good when it came to reading people. Whatever he was looking at, though, it didn’t disappoint, because any time your eyes met, he would send you a small, encouraging smile that would immediately dissipate any worries you might have had.

In what felt like no time at all, the three of you were piling out of the car at your house again, and you didn’t hesitate to return Thor’s hug as he said his goodbyes.

“It was wonderful to meet you,” he assured you. “Loki’s never let me meet any of his girlfriends before, but I see now that he was just waiting for the right one to come along first.”

Taken off guard by his genuine compliment, you could only blink up at him for a few moments in surprise before your brain kicked back in.

“That’s…so kind of you to say, Thor. _Thank_ you.”

“No, thank _you_.”

After clapping you on the shoulder, Thor said his goodbye and got back into his car, giving you and Loki some privacy. As soon as his blonde head disappeared into the vehicle, you felt two cold hands cup your cheeks, and before you knew it, you were being pulled into a deep, toe-curling kiss, and you let yourself melt into your boyfriend’s embrace as he held you against him.

“That went well, I would say,” he murmured as the two of you finally parted. “He likes you, if that wasn’t already obvious.”

“I like him, too,” you smiled. “Thank you for letting me meet him.”

“I should be the one thanking you, love.”

He opened his mouth to continue speaking, but you watched as uncertainty began to creep along his features, and after a few moments of considering, his mouth snapped shut once again.

“What is it?”

“Nothing,” he replied, shaking his head. “I forgot what I was going to say, is all. I think driving with Thor still has my brains slightly scrambled.”

“Hm.” You didn’t believe him, not for a second, but whatever it was left your mind as soon as his lips came down onto yours once more. This kiss was slower than before, and lingering; his hands slid up over your hips to settle on your waist, and he let out a soft sigh through his nose before pulling away to set his forehead on yours.

“I should probably head home,” he whispered. “But Thor leaves out tomorrow morning. Would you like to come over tomorrow?”

“For dinner?”

“And dessert.”

You grinned, pressing one last kiss to his lips before taking a step towards your door.

“I love you, Loki. Have a good rest of your evening.”

“I will, darling. But only because I’ll be thinking of you.”

_______________

The two men drove in silence back to Loki’s house, leaving him to think back over the evening. It couldn’t have gone better, in his opinion. Thor liked you, but Thor was a bit like a golden retriever in that way. He loved most of the people he met, whereas Loki had always been more comparable to a cat; he needed to trust someone before deciding whether or not he liked them, typically, and his trust was not easily gained. In fact, there were only two people in the world he truly trusted, and now, they’d both finally made the other’s acquaintance.

The silence was finally broken when Thor parked in front of Loki’s home. As they both sat there, illuminated by the dashboard and streetlights, his elder brother turned to face him fully.

“I like her,” he announced, as though Loki couldn’t already tell that. “Does she know?”

Loki arched an eyebrow before getting out of the car and fishing his keys out of his pocket, striding up to his door as his brother scrambled to catch up with him.

“I have no idea what you could be alluding to,” he replied, opening his front door and bending down to scoop up Lovecraft, who had a habit of swiping at Thor anytime he tried to enter the house.

“Oh, I wonder,” Thor countered, shutting the door behind him before peeling off his winter coat. “I suppose I could be talking about your allergy to dogs. Or perhaps your aversion to the color orange. Or, oh, I don’t know, your habit of murdering innocents. Who knows?”

With a roll of his eyes, Loki hung his coat up beside Thor’s and started striding towards his basement stairs, trusting Thor to follow him.

“How many times must I tell you – there’s no such thing as ‘innocent’. Not in today’s world, at least.”

“Try telling that to a jury.”

“Hopefully it’ll never come to that point,” Loki sighed. He bypassed the first room of his basement, not giving a second glance to the old, miscellaneous pieces of furniture and the stacked boxes of keepsakes from childhood. No, instead he focused on the large, dusty bookshelf that covered the far wall of the room, reaching for the thick compendium of Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets that hid the keyhole.

“I’ll never get used to being down here…” Thor’s voice was uncharacteristically small in here; usually, his baritone could be heard from several rooms away, but his mood always took a dark turn when he was reminded of Loki’s…’proclivities’.

“You can always wait upstairs, you know,” Loki uttered without a backwards glance, fitting the small key into the lock and twisting until he heard a click.

“I know,” his brother assured him. “But I promised I’d help you, so let’s just get this over with.”

Smirking, Loki pocketed his keys and pulled the hidden door open, watching a section of the bookcase separate from the rest and turn on the hinges he’d installed so long ago. The creaking shriek they elicited made him wince, and he made a mental note to grease them before his next houseguest.

Luckily for Thor, the only beings alive or dead in Loki’s house were the two of them and Lovecraft, who pattered in after them before jumping up onto the chair in the corner. He typically didn’t allow his cat entry to this room, for obvious reasons, but he decided to leave her be as he knelt next to the detached backseat from his car that was sitting in the middle of the room.

“I’ve already replaced the stuffing; you just need to help me reupholster, and then I can do the rest.”

Thor knelt beside him with a grumble, grabbing a staplegun from his wall of power tools and torture instruments as he kept his eyes stubbornly focused on the seat.

“You know, if you used plastic tarps like any self-respecting serial killer would, you wouldn’t have to reupholster anything in the first place,” he groused. Loki knew that he had a point, and he usually _did_ use plastic when transporting his victims.

“…This one was a bit of a last minute decision,” he finally conceded. “But I’m handling it, as you can see.”

Thor’s lips turned white as he pressed them together, pausing in his struggle to roll out more fabric.

“Loki, you can’t afford to make many last minute decisions with this sort of thing,” he muttered, all joking gone from his voice. “You promised me you’d be careful if and when you get these…urges.”

“And I am,” Loki assured his brother. “Truthfully. No one has ever suspected me of anything. Not once, and you know that.”

With a huff, Thor nodded and continued his work, his movements echoing in the concrete chamber. In the back of his mind, Loki knew that his brother was right, though. Five months ago, he never would have been so careless as to get a victim’s blood on his suede car seats. But, now that he had you in his life, all of his passions seemed to be reigniting. For one, he’d never had as much sex in his previous relationships as he was having with you. He also never felt the need to talk to someone as much as he spoke with you; he hadn’t had many girlfriends or boyfriends in the past, but the ones he’d had always complained about him being too distant, too aloof, too ‘unfeeling’. Now, though, he found himself craving you and your company at all times during the day, and his alone time was less and less precious to him as he considered how much better it would be having you by his side.

However, as those passions rose, others did as well. You and your newest novel were a constant source of inspiration to him, and his lust for blood had grown considerably. If he kept up the pace that he was at right now, he knew it would only be a matter of time before he slipped up. But he pushed that thought aside, as he always had. That was a bridge he would cross when he came upon it.

“…Will you ever tell (Y/N)?”

Thor’s question was sudden, and it made his hands still as he reached for the staple gun.

“…Are you suggesting that I do?”

“Of course not.” Thor shook his head, biting back a curse as he tried stretching a length of suede over the car seat’s frame. “At least, not right now. I think both of us know that it wouldn’t end well. But this is a…mammoth secret to keep from a significant other, Loki. And if you weren’t able to hide it from me, there will come a day when you won’t be able to hide it from her, either. Not if you’re going to keep her in your life.”

“You didn’t find out until I was twenty,” he countered. “And you only found out because I got sloppy.”

“I still knew that there was something off. And, if I’m being honest with myself, I suspected the truth for years before I caught you in the act.”

Loki’s eyebrows rose, and he didn’t know what was more surprising to him – the truth, or the fact that his brother was still able to take him off guard, even after all of the years spent together.

“…Truthfully?”

“Of course, Loki. I knew you weren’t sneaking out at night to go clubbing.” He chuckled a bit at the thought, though his laughter died the second he saw the look Loki shot him. “I saw you burning your clothes once, in the field behind our house. We were 17 at the time, I think. And I knew you wouldn’t burn them unless it were to hide…well. Bloodstains. It was the only explanation for why you decided to burn them in the middle of the night, at least.

“But I told myself that I was wrong. People do that, you know; when someone you love hurts you, or when they do something wrong, you know it. But you lie to yourself anyways.”

There was a long, heavy silence before the two brothers got back to work, one that was only broken several minutes later, when they were mostly finished.

“Loki?”

“Mm?”

Loki looked up, catching a solemn expression on Thor’s face that immediately didn’t sit right with him. For all of his sociopathic tendencies towards most people, he didn’t like to see his typically jovial sibling so serious.

“I can’t pretend to know what it’s like to be you,” Thor sighed. “I’ve never fully understood how your mind works, but I know that it’s hard for you to let people in. So I’m happy for you and (Y/N). I am. But I also know that, someday, she’s going to find out. It can either be from you slipping up, or from you telling her outright. But, someday, she’s going to find out.

“I meant what I said – when you find out that someone you love is bad, and that they’ve done bad things, you lie to yourself before accepting the truth. Just…promise me that you’ll look out for when she starts lying to herself about you. Alright?”

Loki swallowed, his throat suddenly dry as he thought about you, about how your face would twist into an expression of fear, of disgust, of hatred, when you finally found out about him. And his heart sank as he pictured the fragile reality you two had been living in all of a sudden crumpling into ash. He couldn’t even bear the thought of losing you, but what other choice would he have if you found him out?

“What are you suggesting I do when she finds out?” he asked, a slight waver making its way through the syllables despite his best interest.

“I’m asking what you’re prepared to do, brother. Think it over, and please, just be careful.”

____________

You woke up the next day to find a text waiting for you from an unknown number, but as soon as you opened it, a wide smile came over your face.

_Loki wouldn’t give me your number, so I had to get it out of his phone while he slept. But I wanted to tell you before I fly back to London that it was lovely meeting you, and I’m very happy my brother finally found someone he loves. -Thor_

The text was sent at 6:14am, so you knew that Thor was likely already on his plane, but you still tapped out a message before getting up and starting your day.

**It was great to meet you, too! Have a safe trip back.**

With that, you finally dragged yourself out of bed and went about your morning routine, sending Loki a quick good morning text as you ate breakfast. You were planning on finishing up the last chapter of your coroner story, and you were excited to let him read it that evening when it was done. He’d been so supportive throughout the entire writing process that you were making record time on it; even your editor was surprised at how productive you’d been lately, and you were anxious for his thoughts on the ending.

As you sat down at your computer to type it up, though, you saw that you had an email from your publisher, and your heartrate skyrocketed as you opened it up. You’d sent them the first five edited chapters a few weeks back, and even though you already had several published books, you still got excited anytime you heard back from them.

Your heart only beat faster as you read through their email, and though you’d only just sat down, you were soon leaping out of your chair once you were done. They were going to publish it! At least, they were going to as soon as you had all of the chapters. You’d been concerned that your main character wouldn’t have as much appeal as others of yours had in the past, but as it turned out, they loved Olivia.

Before you even realized what you were doing, your phone was out of your pocket and you were dialing Loki’s number, your fingers trembling in excitement. You tapped your foot anxiously as you waited for him to pick up, and when he finally did, he barely had time to say hello before you were telling him the good news.

“Hello, darling-“

“LOKI I HEARD BACK FROM MY PUBLISHER!” you cried, grinning from ear to ear. “Also hello! Good morning, my love.”

Loki’s velvety laugh only added to your elation, and you quickly ran up to your bedroom to start getting dressed.

“Good morning to you, too. I take it the news was good?”

“It was amazing news! Fantastic news, actually. I was going to finish the final chapter today, but now I’m too excited to focus!”

“Well, love, I’m sure that if you want to just take today to celebrate, it won’t put you too far behind schedule.”

“Speaking of celebrating, can I bring lunch by today on your break? If work isn’t too busy for you, that is.”

“That should be fine, darling; work is actually quite slow.”

“Perfect! I’m going to start getting dressed, but text me which restaurant you’d like, and I’ll pick it up. My treat!”

“Alright, love,” he chuckled. “I’ll see you around noon, then.”

After you two said your goodbyes, you flew through getting ready and ran a few errands before lunch time came around. Loki, as usually, had told you that he was fine with anything and that you should pick the restaurant, so you swung by your favorite bistro before taking a cab to Bellevue Hospital, waving at the front desk staff as you passed by. They all recognized you at this point from your previous visits to see Loki on his break, and they all smiled and waved back as you made your way to the elevators.

“(Y/N)!”

You turned to see one of the receptionists calling you over, and so you shifted the food boxes in your hands and approached the desk.

“Dr. Odinson asked me to tell you that he’s in his office – it’s on the same floor as the morgue, but take a left instead of a right when you get out of the elevators. His is the third office on the left.”

After thanking her for letting you know, you headed down that way, shivering as you stepped out into the cold basement floor. His office had a bronze name placard on it that had Loki’s name on it, and so, after a quiet knock, you walked in to find him sitting behind a tidy desk, tapping away at his laptop furiously.

“I come bearing gifts!” you announced, causing his head to pop up from staring at his screen.

“Come in, love,” he smiled, standing up to help you with the food. “Thank you so much for lunch.”

“Don’t mention it! I wanted to celebrate the latest book, and I can think of no way I’d like to celebrate more than to spend time with the man I love. …And that was incredibly cheesy, wasn’t it?”

“It was,” Loki laughed, pulling the chair in front of his desk out for you. “But it was also very sweet, and I appreciate it more than you realize.”

After setting your food down on the desk, you sat down, not realizing that Loki wasn’t going back to his side of the desk until you heard the click of a lock sliding shut behind you. Turning around, you watched as Loki stepped away from the door, approaching you with a conniving glint in his eyes.

“Did…you just lock the door?” you asked, taking a sip of your drink.

“I did,” he confirmed. He didn’t elaborate further before sinking down onto his knees in front of you, and you only caught on to his intent after he gently took the to-go cup out of your hands to rest it on his desk.

“…Am I stuck in here with you, or are you stuck in here with me?” you joked, starting to squirm in your chair as Loki’s hands came down onto your knees.

The only answer you got was a wink before his lips were on yours, and all other thoughts fizzled out as his palms started creeping up your thighs, getting closer and closer to the waistband of your jeans. His tongue tasted like coffee as it glided over your own, and a small moan escaped your lips when his teeth gently nipped at your bottom lip.

“Are you sure about this?” you whispered as he started unbuttoning your pants. “I mean… What if we get caught?”

“We won’t get caught, love,” he assured you, slowly dragging your zipper down before beginning to slide your jeans off. “No one can stop us from having a little celebration. As long as you can keep quiet, that is.”

You lifted your hips as he tugged your trousers down your legs, taking your panties with them, and you shivered when you felt the cold leather chair against your exposed skin. Biting your lip, you slowly nodded your head, spreading your legs wider as Loki stooped down to place open-mouthed kisses along your inner thigh. It was wrong; you knew that there were other doctors in the offices right next to his, and you had no idea how thick or thin the walls were. Could they hear how hard you were suddenly breathing? Would someone passing by be able to hear the low, muffled groans Loki was making as he nipped and sucked hickeys into your skin?

As if sensing your thoughts, Loki glanced upwards as he spread your thighs even further apart, his lips twitching up into a smirk before he suddenly grabbed your hips and pulled, forcing your ass closer to the edge of the chair. In the same instance, he leaned down and _buried_ his face between your legs, his nose just barely brushing against your clit as his tongue started lapping at your entrance. Your eyes rolled back he slipped it inside of you, the vibrations from his voice like bolts of lightning as he let out a guttural growl. He’d commented before on how much he loved eating you out, and you had no reason to doubt him as he thrust his tongue deeper and deeper inside of you.

“Loki…” You kept your voice at a soft whisper, gripping his hair as his tongue started alternating between thrusting into you and tracing patterns into your clit. Your hips jolted every time he swirled his tongue over your swollen bud, and it wasn’t long until they started rocking up against his face of their own accord. If you were at home, you’d already be begging for more or moaning his name over and over again, but now you were acutely conscious of every sound the two of you were making.

The panting of your breath and the obscene, slick noise of his tongue moving against you seemed to echo in the small room. With every shift of your hips, the chair you were in creaked, and you were soon fighting not to move too much for fear that it would be too loud. You were biting your lip so hard that you wouldn’t be surprised if you suddenly tasted blood, but the pleasure Loki was bringing you overshadowed any pain or discomfort.

Just as you felt the edge of your orgasm starting to approach, though, he was pulling away, licking his lips and watching your pussy clench around nothing as you tried to guide him back with the hands you had locked in his hair.

“Please,” you whimpered, “fuck, I was getting close-“

“Don’t worry, love,” he interrupted, leaning up to press a quick kiss to your lips. “I’m far from through with you.”

And that was all the warning you got before he scooped you up, setting you down onto his desk before you could do anything but let out a surprised gasp. At some point while he was eating you out, he must have taken his cock out of his pants, and now he was pushing you to lay on your back as he lined up with your entrance.

You gripped the edge of his desk so hard that your knuckles turned pale, but you still weren’t fully prepared for him to abruptly shove his cock inside of you, so hard that it pushed the air out of your lungs and pried a sharp moan from your lips. His hand came down over your mouth at its sound, and he leaned over you until your face was only inches from his.

“You have to stay quiet,” he panted, pulling out almost entirely before thrusting back into you. “You don’t want us to get caught, do you?”

You hurriedly shook your head no, and he nodded before pulling his hand away and sliding it between your bodies. You nearly moaned again once his fingertips found your clit, though, and you pressed your own hand to your mouth as he began playing with it in time with his thrusts.

“Good girl,” he purred, his own voice fighting back a moan as he started a fast rhythm. “Of course… Maybe you _do_ want us to get caught.”

He punctuated his statement with a hard buck of his hips, and you pressed the back of your hand even harder to your lips as it startled another cry out you. The desk was beginning to creak in time with his movements, and you knew that anyone who walked by outside would be able to hear it. You just hoped that they couldn’t also hear Loki’s raspy breathing, or the way his balls were smacking against your ass with every thrust forward.

“Maybe you _do_ want someone to hear me fucking you. Is that it?” he continued, his voice not once rising above a low growl. “Do you want them all to know that you’re mine? That you’re letting me use you, fuck you, right here in my office? Anyone with a key could get in, love. A janitor, another doctor… Anyone could come in and see what a good little slut you’re being for me. And you love that, don’t you?”

His thumb was moving faster and faster against your clit, and you were rapidly approaching your orgasm; you couldn’t remember the last time a partner had brought you so close so quickly. This was so different from how Loki usually was; typically, he was gentle with you, treating you like you would shatter if he were to grip you too tightly or kiss you too hard. But there were times, you’d found, when something else would peak through the cracks; some nights, his hand found its way around your throat, or his voice dropped into something predatory, threatening.

This was one of those times, evidently. And it always made something else rise up within you – the desire to submit, to bend to him completely, to let him have you and use you however he wanted. And so you did.

With a long, loud moan, you felt yourself cumming around his cock, so hard that it made your eyes roll back and your back arch up off of the desk, bending at an almost unnatural angle as your cunt clenched around him. Through the ringing in your ears, you heard him let out a muffled curse, and his thrusts began getting even harder, even faster, and through it all you laid back and took it. Your body was limp and pliable from your orgasm, and you watched through half-lidded eyes as he took what he wanted from it.

It wasn’t long, though, until he pulled out, stroking his cock a few more times before you felt his cum against your thighs and belly, staining your shirt with his release as he leaned heavily over you, catching his breath. After letting out a deep, heavy sigh, he leaned over, kissing you gently before resting his head on your chest.

“…Wow,” you breathed, settling one of your hands on the back of his head as your other arm drew him closer.

“I agree with that assessment,” he murmured, pressing a kiss over your heart before lazily turning towards you. “You _did_ say you wanted to celebrate, though.”

A giggle escaped your lips at that, and he smiled softly before kissing you once again and slowly drawing himself up to full height.

“I’m…sorry, if I was too rough,” he began, but you sat up and pressed a finger to his lips, shaking your head.

“I liked it. Loki, I know you’d never hurt me,” you assured him. “And I know you don’t really mean it when you do things like call me a slut.”

“Good,” he nodded, his eyes skating over your face. “Because I don’t. And I would never, _ever_ , hurt you.”

“Then don’t apologize for getting a little rough,” you countered, pecking his cheek before starting to stand on wobbly legs. “Because you better believe I enjoyed it.”

“Mm. I could tell.”

You swatted playfully at his arm before straightening your jeans and grabbing a tissue from his desk, dabbing at the cum he’d left on your shirt before giving up on the task entirely and deciding to just keep your coat buttoned up on the ride home.

“…(Y/N)?”

You turned to find Loki staring at you, having already smoothed his appearance back to its usual unrumpled state. The look in his eyes gave you pause, though – it was the same look that he’d had the night before, when he’d looked like he had something to tell you before deciding against it. Unbidden, fear suddenly swept over you, and you had the worst feeling that he was going to break things off, that he was going to tell you that he’d rushed into things and that he didn’t feel the same way as you.

Gulping, you stepped closer, fighting against the trembling in your hands as he took them between his, pressing a kiss to each of your palms before looking up at you once more.

“I’ve…been doing a lot of thinking, and Thor’s visit yesterday made me realize something,” he began.

“I haven’t ever felt this way about anyone before. And, if I’m being honest, sometimes it terrifies me. There are… There are things about me that I haven’t told anyone besides Thor, and even then, there are things he still doesn’t know.

“I came to the realization last night, though, that I want you to know everything about me. I want you to accept me, fully, as I’ve accepted you. And even if I’m not ready to share it all with you, I know that I want us to grow to that point together. I want you to be mine, yes, but I want to be yours, too. Wholly and completely.”

He took a deep breath, then, and your eyes grew wide as he reached into his pocket, taking out a small box and handing it to you.

“I had this made earlier today, after I dropped Thor off at the airport. And I realize that, yes, this is rushing things a bit, and I want you to know that it’s alright if you need to say no or if you need to think it over. But I’m ready to take the next step, whenever you are.”

Feeling as if time was suddenly moving in slow motion, you opened the box, tearing your eyes away from Loki just long enough to look down…

…and see a key waiting for you.

Immediately, your heart soared, and you looked up to see a tiny, hopeful smile on his lips.

“Will you move in with me, my love?”

And even though, yes, it was probably too soon, even though you’d only known Loki for four months, even though all of the logic inside of you was screaming against it, you didn’t hesitate before answering him.

“Yes!” 

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, guys! Please let me know what you think; your feedback is very appreciated! If you'd like to, follow me on tumblr; my blog is @nikki-writes-stuff. Thank you so much for reading!


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